Minoo Masani facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Minoo Masani
Indian Ambassador to Brazil
In office May 1948 – May 1949
President	Rajendra Prasad
Succeeded by	Joginder Sen Bahadur
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office 1957–1962
Preceded by	Abdul Ibrahim
Succeeded by	P. K. Ghosh
Constituency	Ranchi (Lok Sabha constituency)
In office 1967–1971
Preceded by	U. N. Dhebar
Succeeded by	Ghanshyambhai Oza
Constituency	Rajkot (Lok Sabha constituency)
Personal details
Born	Minocher Rustom Masani (1905-11-20)20 November 1905 Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Died	27 May 1998(1998-05-27) (aged 92) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Political party	Swatantra Party
Other political affiliations	Indian National Congress
Occupation	Journalist, Politician, Writer, Diplomat
Known for	Promotion of liberal economy

Minocher Rustom "Minoo" Masani (born November 20, 1905 – died May 27, 1998) was an important Indian politician. He was a key leader of the Swatantra Party, a political group that no longer exists. Masani served three times as a Member of Parliament (MP). He represented the Rajkot area in Gujarat. He was an MP in the second, third, and fourth Lok Sabha (India's main parliamentary house).

Minoo Masani was from the Parsi community. He helped start the Indian Liberal Group. This group was a "think tank" that promoted ideas of classical liberalism. This means they believed in individual freedom and limited government.

He was also a member of the Constituent Assembly of India. This group helped create India's Constitution. In 1947, he suggested including a uniform civil code in the Constitution. This idea was not accepted at the time.

His public career began in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation. He was elected as Mayor of Mumbai in 1943. He also became a member of the Indian Legislative Assembly. In August 1960, he helped form the Swatantra Party. He did this with C. Rajagopalachari and N. G. Ranga. This happened when international Communism was very strong.

Minoo Masani passed away at his home in Mumbai at the age of 92.

Minoo Masani's Early Life

Minocher Rustom Masani, known as Minoo, was born on November 20, 1905. His father, Sir Rustom Masani, was a municipal commissioner in Mumbai. He was also the Vice Chancellor of Bombay University.

Minoo Masani studied in Mumbai first. Later, he moved to London to continue his education. He attended the London School of Economics. There, he earned his law degree. In 1928, he trained to become a barrister at the Lincoln's Inn.

Minoo Masani's Political Journey

Minoo Masani started his career as a lawyer in 1929. He worked at the Bombay High Court. The next year, he joined India's fight for independence. He took part in the civil disobedience movement. The British government arrested him many times for his actions.

In 1932, he was in Nashik jail. There, he met Jayaprakash Narayan. Together, they started the Congress Socialist Party in 1934. Masani also joined the Quit India Movement in 1942. He was jailed again during this time. After his release, he entered politics. He was elected Mayor of the Bombay Municipal Corporation. Masani was also a close friend of Jawaharlal Nehru, who later became India's first Prime Minister.

After World War II, Masani's political views changed. He moved away from Socialism. He became a supporter of free market economics. This means he believed in less government control over the economy. After India became independent, Masani supported "democratic socialism". He believed this would prevent too much control by either private companies or the government.

For a short time, he stepped away from active politics. He represented India in a UN group on minorities. He disagreed with the Nehru government's views on how the USSR treated minorities. Because of this, he was appointed as the Indian Ambassador to Brazil in May 1948. He served there for one year.

After his time in Brazil, he returned to India. He became a top assistant to J.R.D Tata, the head of the Tata group. In 1950, he started 'Freedom First'. This was a monthly magazine that promoted liberal ideas in politics.

He returned to electoral politics in 1957. He was elected to the Lok Sabha from Ranchi as an independent candidate. In 1959, he co-founded the Swatantra Party with C. Rajagopalachari. He won another election from Rajkot as a Swatantra Party candidate. He represented Rajkot until 1971.

Masani was one of the few politicians who opposed the nationalization of banks. This was done by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The Swatantra Party was the largest opposition party in Parliament. As its leader in the Lok Sabha, Masani led debates on finance bills. He made the Congress government work harder on its policies. He also led the PAC. This committee checks government spending. A collection of his speeches was published as Congress Misrule and Swatantra Alternative.

In the 1971 general elections, the Swatantra Party did not do well. Masani then resigned as the party president. After 1971, he continued to write and edit his magazine Freedom First. He even fought and won a court case against the government when they tried to censor his magazine.

Minoo Masani's Published Works

Minoo Masani was also a talented author. He wrote many books. His first book, Our India, was very popular. It was even used as a textbook before India gained independence.

• Zoroastrianism: The Religion Of The Good Life (1938)
• Our India (1940)
• Socialism Reconsidered (1944)
• Picture of a Plan (1945)
• A Plea for a Mixed Economy (1947)
• Our Growing Human Family (1950)
• Neutralism in India (1951)
• The Communist Party of India: A Short History (1954)
• Congress Misrule and Swatantra Alternative (1967)
• Too Much Politics, Too Little Citizenship (1969)
• Liberalism (1970)
• Folklore of wells: being a study of water-worship in East and West (1974)
• The Constitution, Twenty Years Later (1975)
• Bliss was it in that Dawn ... (1977)
• Against the tide (1981)
• We Indians (1989)