Vinayak Damodar Savarkar Death Anniversary

 

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, who passed away on 26 February 1966, Bombay [now Mumbai]) was a Hindu and Indian nationalist and leading figure in the Hindu Mahasabha (“Great Society of Hindus”), a Hindu nationalist organization and political party.

While a student of law in London (1906–10), Savarkar helped to instruct a group of Indian revolutionaries in methods of sabotage and assassination that associates of his had apparently learned from expatriate Russian revolutionaries in Paris. During this period, he wrote The Indian War of Independence, 1857 (1909), in which he took the view that the Indian Mutiny of 1857 was the first expression of Indian mass rebellion against British colonial rule.

In March 1910 Savarkar was arrested on various charges relating to subversion and incitement to war and was sent to India for trial and convicted. In a second trial he was convicted of his alleged complicity in the assassination of a British district magistrate in India, and, after sentencing, he was transported to the Andaman Islands for detention “for life.” He was brought back to India in 1921 and released from detention in 1924. While imprisoned he wrote Hinditva: Who Is a Hindu? (1923), coining the term Hindutva (“Hinduness”), which sought to define Indian culture as a manifestation of Hindu values; this concept grew to become a major tenet of Hindu nationalist ideology.

Savarkar resided in Ratnagiri, India, until 1937, when he joined the Hindu Mahasabha, which militantly defended the Hindus’ claims of religious and cultural supremacy over Indian Muslims. He served as president of the Mahasabha for seven years. In 1943 he retired to Bombay. When Mohandas K. Gandhi was assassinated in 1948 by a former member of the Mahasabha, Savarkar was implicated, but he was acquitted in his subsequent trial because of insufficient evidence.

Shankarrao Bhavrao Chavan Death Anniversary

 

Shankarrao Bhavrao Chavan, who passed away on 26 February 2004, was an Indian politician who served twice as Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 1975 until 1977 and from 13 March 1986 until 26 June 1988.He was the Finance Minister of India from 1988 to 1989 in Rajiv Gandhi ministry. He also served as the Home Minister of India twice, from 31 December 1984 to 12 March 1986 in the Rajiv Gandhi cabinet, and from 21 June 1991 to 16 May 1996 in the P.V. Narasimha Rao cabinet.

Sir Benegal Narsing Rau Birth Anniversary

 

Sir Benegal Narsing Rau, born on 26 February 1887, Karkala or Mangalore, Mysore [now Karnataka], was one of the foremost Indian jurists of his time. He helped draft the constitutions of Burma (Myanmar) in 1947 and India in 1950. As India’s representative on the United Nations Security Council (1950–52), he was serving as president of the council when it recommended armed assistance to South Korea  (June 1950). Later he was a member of the Korean War cease-fire commission.

A graduate of the Universities of Madras and Cambridge, Rau entered the Indian civil service in 1910. After revising the entire Indian statutory code (1935–37), he was knighted (1938) and made judge (1939–44) of the Bengal High Court at Calcutta (Kolkata). His writings on Indian law include a noted study on constitutional precedents as well as articles on human rights in India. Rau served briefly (1944–45) as prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir state. In 1949 he became India’s permanent representative to the UN. From February 1952 until his death, he was a judge of the Permanent Court of International Justice, The Hague. Before his election to the court, he was regarded as a candidate for secretary-general of the United Nations.

Kuwait National Day

The Kuwait National Day is celebrated on February 25 every year. This special holiday commemorates the day that Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah became the ruler of Kuwait in 1950. Al-Sabah was an exceptional leader. During his reign, he signed a treaty that secured Kuwait’s independence from Britain, putting an end to its status as a British protectorate in 1961. It was also during Al-Sabah’s rule that the Constitution of Kuwait and the Parliament of Kuwait were formally established. 

The first celebrations were held in 1963. People in Kuwait celebrate this day by going to different places, watching fireworks at night, hanging out with friends, and more. People decorate their houses with colourful lights, flags, and even candles are lit at dinner time. The historical places like Kuwait National Museum, Al Bahhar Entertainment Historical Village, Mirror House, and Kuwait Towers are decorated with light. Flags are hoisted in buildings and displayed in public spaces. The streets are alive to the early hours of the next morning each year. National Day is a public holiday in Kuwait.

Estonia Independence Day

Each year, on February 24, the Republic of Estonia celebrates Independence Day.

A little over 100 years ago, from 1918 to 1920, the Estonian people were embroiled in the Estonian War of Independence against the Soviet Western Front offensive. The most significant day was February 24, 1918, on which Estonia declared statehood.

This day is now commemorated as a national holiday, celebrated with a televised flag raising at Pikk Hermann Tower, the ancient defensive stronghold next to Toompea Castle, fireworks, a parade, and a presidential reception.

Estonia is a country in Northern Europe that borders the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Finland. Home to more than 1,500 islands, Estonia's diverse topography spans rocky beaches, old-growth forests, and many lakes. Tourists visit Estonia to see castles, churches and hilltop fortresses.

Madhubala Death Anniversary

 

Madhubala, who passed away on 23 February 1969, at the age of 36, was an Indian film actress who appeared in Hindi films. She was active between 1942 and 1964. Known for her beauty, personality, and sensitive portrayals of tragic women, she was also known as The Beauty With Tragedy and The Venus Queen of Indian Cinema. Her comparison with Hollywood actress Marilyn Monroe earned her the name Marilyn Monroe of Bollywood.

P.C. Sorcar Birth Anniversary

 

P. C. Sorcar was the stage name of the Indian magician, Protul Chandra Sorcar, born on 23 February 1913. Sorcar was an internationally active magician throughout the 1950s and 1960s, performing his Indrajal show before live audiences and on television. The original family name was "Sarcar", but was changed to Sorcar to more closely match the word "Sorcery."

Sorcar’s publicity design was relentless and steeped in Indianness. His extravagant magic shows began with a ritualistic drawing of a mandala pattern on stage and lighting of an oil lamp before the portrait for Goddess Durga. Dressed as the Rajput royalty, Sorcar presented his magic tricks.

He was the master of grand stage acts like the famous “Water of India” where an earthen pot would always be filled with water up to the brim. Sorcar would throw away the water from time to time and yet the pot would be filled to the brim. His X-Ray vision, drum illusion and the floating lady took him to higher echelons of fame.

Sorcar died of a heart attack at the age of 57 in Ashaikawa, Hokkaidō, Japan, where he was performing.