Mancherjee
Bhownaggree was born in Bombay, India,
on 15th August, 1851. The son of a merchant, he was educated at Elphinstone
College and the University of Bombay, before becoming a journalist.
In 1872 Bhownaggree replaced his father as head of the Bombay State
Agency. He later became Judicial Councillor of Behavnager, before
moving to England in 1882, where he worked as a lawyer.
A member of the Conservative Party,
Bhownaggree was chosen as Bethnel Green candidate for the 1895
General Election. He won the seat and therefore became the second
Asian to be elected to the House
of Commons.
The Liberal
Party
MP, Dadabhai Naoroji, had represented
Finsbury Central between 1892-95. Bhownaggree, unlike Naoroji, was
a strong supporter of British rule in India.
Bhownaggree retired from politics after being defeated in the 1906
General Election. He gave generously to local charities and in
memory of his dead sister, donated the Bhownagree Gallery in the Commonwealth
Institute. Mancherjee Bhownaggree died on 14th November, 1933.
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