Shyama Prasad Mukherjee was a distinguished educa­tionist. At the young age of 33, he was made the Vice- Chancellor of Calcutta University. He joined politics in 1937 and was elected to the Bengal Legislative Assembly. In 1939, he joined the Hindu Mahasabha. From 1940 to 1944, he remained the President of the Hindu Mahasabha. In April 1950, he resigned from the post of Union Minister for Indus­tries and Supplies. He also founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh -and advocated the full integration of the state of Jammu and Kashmir with India.