Asaf Ali

Asaf Ali (1888-1953) was a  Indian freedom fighter and diplomat. He served as India's Minister to Switzerland and India's first Ambassador to the United States. 

 Born in 1888, Asaf Ali was educated in the St. Stephen's College, Delhi, and went to England for legal studies. He was called to the Bar from Lincoln's Inn in 1912. Back in India, he joined the nationalist movement and was tried in 1918 under the Defence of India Act. He defended himself successfully, and thereafter threw himself heart and soul into the freedom movement. Asaf Ali was jailed several times during the Congress campaign. In 1928 he married Aruna Ganguli, a union against the established norms at that time in India.  He was an active member of the Muslim Nationalist Party and was elected in 1935 from Delhi to the Central Legislative Assembly by a big majority drawing strong support from both Muslims and Hindus. In a later election as a Congress candidate, he was re-elected defeating a candidate of the Muslim League.

See Also:

• Muslims for Free India -- Article narrates the contributions of Muslims during India's freedom struggle against the British.