Muhammad Hidayatullah (English: Mohammad Hidayatullah, born: 17 December 1905; died: 18 September 1992) was the first Muslim Chief Justice of India. It would be more appropriate to call Muhammad Hidayatullah the first acting President of India, because he was not an elected President according to the constitutional system of India. He also served as the acting President of India on two occasions. Along with this, he was also the sixth Vice President of India for a full term.
Muhammad Hidayatullah’s ancestors were originally from Banaras and were counted among educated scholars. Muhammad Hidayatullah was born on 17 December 1905 in Nagpur (Maharashtra). His grandfather Mr. Munshi Kudratullah was a lawyer in Banaras while his father Khan Bahadur Hafiz Vilayatullah was posted at the ISO Magistrate Headquarters. His father was very talented and passed every educational examination in first class. His father Hafiz Vilayatullah retired from the post of Deputy Commissioner and District from Bhandra in 1928. Muhammad Hidayatullah had two brothers and a sister. He was the youngest among them. Muhammad Hidayatullah’s mother’s name was Muhammadi Begum who belonged to a religious family of Madhya Pradesh, which resided in Handia. Muhammad Hidayatullah’s mother died on 31 July 1937.
While in government service, the British government awarded Mr. Hidayatullah’s father the title of Khan Bahadur, Kesari Hind Medal, Indian Service Honour and the badge of St. John’s Ambulance. His father was also an all India poet and at the age of 9, he received the Muslim title of Hafiz, a symbol of scholarship. He wrote poems in Persian and Urdu languages. Mumbai’s Qutub Publications published a collection of his poems titled ‘Soj-e-Gudaaz’. His father’s second book titled ‘Tameer-e-Hayat’ was published, which was in the form of serious philosophical verse. Hidayatullah’s father was also a member of the Legislative Council for 6 years. Muhammad Hidayatullah’s father died in November, 1949.
Hidayatullah’s family was blessed with education and understood its importance. Due to this Hidayatullah and his two brothers Ikramullah and Ahmadullah got the opportunity to receive a good education from the very beginning. At that time, uniform system was in place only in high-class schools. Hidayatullah spent the first six years of his life in Nagpur. In 1921, he had qualified for the matriculation examination. But he did not get the opportunity to appear for the matriculation examination in 1921 because he had not completed 16 years of age at that time. At that time, the rule was that only a student who had attained the age of 16 could appear for the matriculation examination. Due to this, Hidayatullah passed the matriculation examination in 1922. At that time, he was in a government school in Raipur and he received the ‘Phillips Scholarship’ for coming first in the examination.
Hidayatullah took admission in Morris College for further studies and gave the graduation level examination of Arts. He secured second position in this examination. He missed the first position by one mark, however he was awarded a gold medal. In 1926 Hidayatullah went to London with his brother Ahmadullah. There he gave some examinations. After that in 1927 he took admission in Trinity College Cambridge for Law. He was fond of reading. Hence he also took English as an additional subject. Then before coming to India in June 1930 he passed the law examination from ‘Lincoln’s Inn’. But he could not get higher education in law.
After coming to India, Hidayatullah did private practice in Nagpur High Court from 1930 to 1936. In these six years, he earned a lot of fame as an advocate. His wish was to do teaching work in life. Fate gave this opportunity to M. Hidayatullah from 1934 to 1942. He started teaching law subject in Nagpur University as a part time professor.
Hidayatullah used to give lectures in the class with great simplicity and entertainment. His students were very impressed by his lectures. His fellow lecturers also liked him a lot. After some time, he also became the Dean of the Law Faculty run by Nagpur University. Very few people would know that our former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao was also his student there.
Thus, climbing the ladder step by step, Muhammad Hidayatullah achieved great heights in life. He was an advocate in Nagpur High Court from 1936 to 1942 and a government lawyer from 1942 to 1943. Thus, while progressing, he also became the acting judge of Nagpur High Court on 24 June 1946 during the British rule. He was traditionally made a judge on 13 August 1946 and remained on this post till 1954.
On 5 May 1948, at the age of 43, M. Hidayatullah married a Hindu girl Pushpa from an inter-caste family. Pushpa was from a good family and her father A. N. Shah (ICS) was the Chairman of the All India Income Tax Appellate Tribunal. This marriage was highly respected in the then circumstances in Nagpur and all sections of society extended their heartfelt best wishes to both the families.
The very next year of marriage Hidayatullah got a son, who was named Arshad. As a second child he had a daughter, who was named Avni. But on 9 June 1960 daughter Avni died. Later
The ultimate tragedy of human life is that it is mortal, not eternal. M. Hidayatullah also followed God’s law of mortality and died of a heart attack on 18 September 1992. He died in Mumbai. His life as a human being will always be a source of inspiration for mankind. He was such a personality that anyone who came in contact with him could never forget him. This true son of Mother India will always be remembered for his human qualities.
