Badri Dutt Pandey (born 15 February 1882, Kankhal Haridwar) was an Indian freedom fighter. His parents died at the age of seven. Badri Dutt Pandey was originally from Almora. So after the death of his parents, he came to Almora. He studied in Almora itself. In 1903 he took up teaching work in a school in Nainital. After some time, he got a government job in Dehradun, but soon he resigned from the job and got into journalism.
He worked in a newspaper called Leader in Dehradun from 1903 to 1910. In 1913 he founded the Almora newspaper. He worked to give impetus to the freedom movement through this newspaper. For this reason, many times, the British officers used to ban the publication of this newspaper. He gave Almora newspaper the form of ‘Shakti’ newspaper. ‘Shakti’ weekly newspaper is being published continuously even today. The role of BD Pandey in the Coolie Begar Movement in 1921 is always remembered. He was also awarded the title of ‘Kumaon Kesari.’ In 1920, when the Kashipur session of the Kumaon Council under the leadership of Hargobind Pant, Badridutt Pandey proposed to abolish porter forced labor. In the proposal on forced labor, Badri Dutt Pandey said:
Kumaon is a bureaucratic fortress. Here the bureaucracy has made everyone a coolie. First of all, we have to remove the coolie stigma from the forehead of Kumaon. Only then can our country move forward. Badri Dutt Pandey was in jail for one year in 1921, 18 months in 1930, one year in 1932, three months in 1941. He was also sent to jail in the Quit India Movement of 1942. Even after independence, he continued to actively participate in social work while staying in Almora. In the elections held for the second Lok Sabha in 1957, freedom fighter Hargobind Pant was elected, but he died within a few months. After this, in the by-election held in September 1957, Congress made Badri Dutt Pandey, its candidate and he won. Badri Dutt Pandey was considered very outspoken.
He did not even take advantage of the pension etc. given to the freedom fighters. Its purpose is to serve the country, to propagate the things of the country’s interest, not to allow the feelings of anarchy to develop in the country, to boldly present the people’s side with dignity, to make a magazine of the people’s community, to always illuminate pure democracy. Where people used to suffer from tyranny, hypocrisy, and the glut of governance, do not remain powerless without shedding light. At the time of the 1962 China war, he presented all his medals, awards, etc., to the government. Pandit Badridutt Pandey died on 13 February 1965 after a prolonged illness.