SHUTOSH MUKHOPADHYAY: A CENTENNIAL TRIBUTE

IF greatness comprises character and intellect of the highest order and is to be judged by the enduring value of someone's thoughts and actions, Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay was, beyond question, one of the most outstanding men.

His life is a story of one signal achievement after another. Mathematician, lawyer, judge, jurist, educationist he was all this and more. It would be impossible to do justice to content so manifold and life so full in a short article. May 25 marks the centenary of his passing, so this is an attempt at remembering his many contributions.

Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay was born on June 29, 1864. He was a mathematical prodigy. His mathematical papers― some of them written while he was still at school were published in journals of national and international repute. He secured first class firsts in both BA and MA Mathematics, winning coveted prizes. He then took to law and secured a doctorate. He was equally at home in other subjects. To say he was a genius would be erring on the side of restraint.

Mukhopadhyay built a highly successful career with a combination of intellect and industry. He was appointed the Tagore Law Professor at Calcutta University in 1898 and authored the book, The Law of Perpetuities in British India, in 1902-still considered the polestar on the eastern horizon of jurisprudence. He was appointed a judge of the Calcutta High Court in June 1904. His appointment and tenure on the Bench significantly expanded judicial discourse. He brought to bear on his work inexhaustible energy, great erudition and the integrity of scholarship.