Jagat Narain Mulla

Pandit Jagat Narain Mulla
Vice-Chancellors of the University of Lucknow
In office 1930–1932
Personal details
Born	14 December 1864 (1864-12-14) United Provinces, British India (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India)
Died	11 December 1938 (1938-12-12) (aged 73) Lucknow, United Provinces, British India (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India)
Children	Anand Narain Mulla
Alma mater	Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University
Occupation	Barrister Lawyer

Pandit Jagat Narain Mulla (born 14 December 1864, Kashmir; died 11 December 1938) was a prominent lawyer and public prosecutor in United Provinces during the British Raj. Motilal Nehru served as the public prosecutor on behalf of the British in the Kakori case but, instead of using his own name, he submitted the name of his cousin and junior, Pandit Jagat Narayan Mulla.

The Kakori Incident involved Pandit Ram Prasad Bismil, Roshan Singh, Ashfaqulla Khan, Roshan Singh, and eight other revolutionaries who planned to rob the government treasury from a train at Kakori station near Lucknow to fund an armed revolution in India. Jagat Narayan Mulla, a Kashmiri Brahmin and a relative of Motilal Nehru, was his junior lawyer in Allahabad and worked in Nehru's office. Together, they actively pursued the conviction of Bismil, Singh, Lahiri, and Khan, ultimately leading to their death sentences.

Jagat Narayan Mulla presented compelling arguments in court that proved the revolutionaries had participated in an armed uprising against the British Government of India and had attempted to loot the treasury. As a result, the British executed all the revolutionaries with the support of Motilal Nehru and his junior, Pandit Jagat Narayan Mulla.

Early and personal life

Jagat Narain Mulla was born to Pandit Kali Sahay Mulla; Kashmiri Pandits held a government position in the United Provinces, allowing Jagat Narayan to receive his education there. He completed his law studies at Agra University and started his legal practice in Lucknow, quickly gaining a reputation among the prominent lawyers of his time. He served as the Vice Chancellor of Lucknow University for three years. 'Mulla' was his nickname. He maintained close relationships with notable figures such as Pandit Motilal Nehru, Babu Ganga Prasad Verma, C. Y. Chintamani and Bishan Narayan Dar.

He was the father of Anand Narain Mulla, an Urdu poet and a Member of Parliament in independent India. Later, Jagat Narayan Mulla became affiliated with the Congress party, and after independence, the party nominated his son, Anand Narain Mulla, for a Lok Sabha seat, where he served for ten years. Anand was subsequently appointed as a judge in the Allahabad High Court and later became a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Career

Jagat Narain Mulla was the Chairman of the Reception Committee of the Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress in 1916 and served as the President of the Lucknow Municipality for 15 years. He was also a member of the Hunter Commission, which was formed to investigate the Jallianwala Bagh massacre; as one of the three Indian members of the committee, he expressed disagreement with the report's findings. Following the Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms, he was elected as a member of the United Provinces Legislative Council and appointed Minister for Local Self-Government. Additionally, he served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lucknow for three years, contributing to the institution’s growth and prominence. Furthermore, he was the public prosecutor in the Kakori Conspiracy Case of 1926, where he successfully proved the involvement of the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) in the robbery.

Demise

In his later years, Jagat Narayan Mulla's health deteriorated, leading him to seek treatment in Switzerland. He passed away on 11 December 1938.