He was a Hindu Kayastha by birth and his father Guruprasad Mitra was a landholder who led an agitation against oppression by British indigo planters.
Pal is a Bengali surname, believed to have originated from Sanskrit 'Pala' meaning protector or keeper, and mostly found among Bengali Kayasthas.
He was born in a Kayastha family of Vrihadvatu village near Pundravardhanapura in Varendra (North Bengal), Bangladesh.
Punjabi and haryanvi Duttas belong to either the Kayastha or Mohyal Brahmin community.
Raizada is also used as a surname by Saxena families belonging to Kayastha (A class of Learned Kshatriyas) in some parts of North India.