Dadabhai Naoroji (1825–1917) was a Parsi scholar, businessman and early nationalist who developed the "drain of wealth" theory, presided over the Indian National Congress three times and became the first Indian elected to the British House of Commons.
Naoroji grew up in a modest Parsi priestly family in Bombay and was educated at Elphinstone Institution, where he became one of the first Indians appointed to a professorship. Alongside teaching he took part in social reform: he worked for girls' education, helped found the Rast Goftar newspaper to promote reform among Parsis, and was active in the Bombay Association, one of the earliest political bodies in western India.
In 1855 he went to London as a partner in the first Indian commercial firm established there, Cama and Company, and later ran his own business. Living in Britain gave him a platform to address British public opinion directly. He believed, like other moderates, that the British people were fair-minded and that if they understood the true condition of India they would reform its government. Much of his life was spent collecting statistics, writing papers and lobbying Parliament on that basis.
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