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The department
of Posts, India brought out a stamp on December
28, 1985 to commemorate the centenary of the
Indian National Congress. The stamp was brought
out in a setenant composite of 4 stamps showing
the portraits of 60 former Congress Presidents
and Allan Octavian Hume, the founder of the INC.
The stamp or brochure does not contain any
information on the "who is who" of the
portrayed personalities. This article briefly
describes the personalities. The details can be
obtained from the Indian
National Congress website.
The setenant has been split into the four
individual stamps and have been separately shown
in a different page. See the links below to know the identity of
the personalities featured on the stamps. Click here to see a detailed high-resolution
image (139 KB). You can resize the image if you want..
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Allan
Octavian Hume was an administrator with
a deep insight and understanding of the problems
of rural India. He was a friend of Indian
peasantry, the champion of the aspirations of the
Indian people for self- government and the
foremost advocate of India's unity and nationhood.
Hume has carved out for himself a place of
affection in the hearts of the Indian people.
Joining the Bengal Civil Service at 20 in the
year 1849, Hume spent 45 years of his life
serving the Indian people. In 1883 he initiated
moves for the creation of a political
organisation of the Indian people through which
they could approach the British Government for
constitutional reform and better treatment. It
was at the initiative of Mr. Hume that the Indian
National Congress was founded in 1885. Having
launched the first constitutional battle, Hume
worked for the promotion of India's cause abroad.
He helped to start a journal called "India"
in 1890, which became a weekly by 1898. As a
government officer, he utilized every opportunity
to do something constructive in social and
economic terms. As a free man, he threw in his
lot even more passionately with the Indian people.
In 1894, he left India but continued his mission
for the next 18 years in England. When he died at
the age of 84, on July 31, 1912 the people of
India mourned his death as he was one of them.
Click on the
links to see the Top Left, Top Right,
Bottom Left and Bottom Right parts of the
setenant. Place the cursor on the
portraits for the name, year and place
they presided. Click on the portraits for
details.
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