Raja Sir Panaganti Ramarayaningar KCIE (9 July 1866 – 16 December 1928), also known as the Raja of Panagal, was a ''

zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...

'' of

Kalahasti Srikalahasti is a holy town in Tirupati district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the revenue division of Srikalahasti mandal & Srikalahasti revenue division. It is a part of Tirupati Urban Development Authority, ...

, a Justice Party leader and the

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

or Premier of Madras Presidency from 11 July 1921 to 3 December 1926. Ramarayaningar was born in Srikalahasti, Chittoor district on 9 July 1866. He was educated in Madras and obtained degrees in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

, law, philosophy and

Dravidian languages The Dravidian languages (or sometimes Dravidic) are a family of languages spoken by 250 million people, mainly in southern India, north-east Sri Lanka, and south-west Pakistan. Since the colonial era, there have been small but significant ...

before entering politics. He was one of the founder-members of the Justice Party and served as its President from 1925 to 1928. From 17 December 1920 to 11 July 1921, Ramarayaningar served as the Minister of Local Self-Government in the first Justice Party government led by A. Subbarayalu Reddiar. He served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 11 July 1921 to 3 December 1926. He introduced a number of reforms during his tenure. The Thyagaraya Nagar locality in

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

was developed during his Chief-Ministership. Ramarayaningar resigned as Chief Minister in 1926 when the Justice Party failed to obtain a majority in the 1926 elections to the Madras Legislative Council. He, however, continued to remain active in politics and served as the President of the Justice Party until his death on 16 December 1928. Ramarayaningar was regarded as an advocate of democracy and a staunch supporter of empowerment of the depressed classes. Historians generally attribute the decline of the Justice Party in the mid-1930s to the absence of charismatic leaders in the Justice Party following his death.

Early life

Ramarayaningar belongs to Telugu Padmanayaka

Velama Velama is a caste found mainly in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The earliest occurrence of ''Velama'' as a term for a community dates from the 17th century. Origin and history The Velamas are described by that name from the 17th century and in ...

community and Raja had his early education in the household of Calamur Sundara Sastri, the father-in-law of

C. P. Ramaswami Iyer Sir Chetput Pattabhiraman Ramaswami Iyer (12 November 1879 – 26 September 1966), popularly known as Sir C. P., was an Indian lawyer, administrator and politician who served as the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency from 1920 to 1923, Law m ...

. He completed his schooling from

Triplicane Triplicane, known in the vernacular as Thiruvallikeni, is one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Chennai, India. It is situated on the Bay of Bengal coast and about from Fort St George. The average elevation of the neighbourhood is 14 metres ...

High School in 1886 and graduated in Sanskrit from the Presidency College in 1893 with

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as his optional subject. He graduated in BL and M.A. (Philosophy and Dravidian Languages) in 1899. In 1919, he was appointed a fellow of the Presidency College.

Early political career

Ramarayaningar got his first taste of politics when he was appointed to the district board of

North Arcot North Arcot was a former district in Madras Presidency, acquired by the annexation of the Arcot State in 1855 when its Nawab died without issue. It had Chittoor as its headquarters (currently in Andhra pradesh). On 1 April 1911, the Chittoor d ...

. In 1912, he was nominated to the

Imperial Legislative Council of India The Imperial Legislative Council (ILC) was the legislature of the British Raj from 1861 to 1947. It was established under the Charter Act of 1853 by providing for the addition of 6 additional members to the Governor General Council for legislativ ...

and represented the landlords and ''zamindars'' of

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

. He served as a legislator until 1915. During this period, Ramarayaningar earned the praise of the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...

, Lord Hardinge. He actively supported reforms in the Hindu society. In 1914, Ramarayaningar moved a legislation for the creation of separate Provincial departments for the welfare of depressed classes. In 1915, he was elected President of the Third Andhra Congress. In 1914, the Madras Dravidian Association was established by C. Natesa Mudaliar. Ramarayaningar was elected as the first President of the Association. On 19 July 1917, at a conference in Coimbatore presided over by the Ramarayaningar, the four different non-Brahmin associations got together to form the South Indian Liberal Federation, unofficially known as the Justice Party. In 1921, Ramarayaningar was sent along with

Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu Rao Bahadur Sir Kurma Venkatareddy Naidu KCSI (1875–1942) was an Indian lawyer, professor, politician and Justice Party leader who served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 1 April 1937 to 14 July 1937. He was the last Chief Min ...

and

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to lobby on behalf of the Justice Party before the authorities in England. Ramarayaningar was also active in the All-India Non-Brahmin movement. He was a friend of Shahu Maharaj

Encyclopedia of Political Parties An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

, Pg 24

, Pg 53 and was closely associated with the former's Satya Shodhak Samaj.

, Pg 42 He attended the All India Non-Brahmin Conference held at Belgaum on 26 December 1924

, Pg 48 and presided over the Second All-India Non-Brahmin Conference held at Victoria Hall, Madras on 25 May 1925.

, Pg 49

, Pg 50

, Pg 51 When the '' Government of India Act'' was passed in 1919, provisions were made to hold elections in the Madras Presidency for the first time in history. The Justice Party unanimously decided to contest the elections and was elected to power in the province. A. Subbarayalu Reddiar became the first Chief Minister of the Madras Presidency. Ramarayaningar served as Minister of Local Self-Government in the Subbarayalu Reddiar Government. When Subbarayalu Reddiar resigned, citing health reasons, Ramarayaningar was appointed Chief Minister.

, Pg 182

Chief Minister of Madras

Ramarayaningar served as the Chief Minister of Madras from 11 July 1921 till 3 December 1926.

A. P. Patro Rao Bahadur Sir Annepu Parasuramdas Patro KCIE (1875 or 1876–1946) was an Indian politician, ''zamindar'' and education minister in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. Patro was born in a rich and powerful family of Berhampur, Madras Presiden ...

Berhampur Brahmapur (; also known as Berhampur) is a city on the eastern coastline of Ganjam district of the Indian state of Odisha. Bramhapur is most famous for its street food, silk sarees or pato sarees, temples and many historical places. Bramhapur al ...

was appointed to fill the vacancy caused by Subbarayalu Reddiar's resignation, and he took the portfolio of education.

B & C Mills strike of 1921

In 1921, a labour strike erupted in the

Buckingham and Carnatic Mills Buckingham and Carnatic Mills, popularly known as B & C Mills, were textile mills run by Binny and Co. in the city of Chennai, India. The mills were closed down in 1996 and the site is now used as a container freight station and is a popular ve ...

in Madras. This strike was led by

V. Kalyanasundara Mudaliar Thiruvarur Viruttachala Kalyanasundaram (Thiruvarur Virudhachala Kalyanasundaram : 26 August 1883 – 17 September 1953), better known by his Tamil initials Thiru. Vi. Ka, was a Tamil scholar, essayist and activist. The analytical depth ...

, a leader of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

. The strike lasted for over six months during which around 10,000 workers struck work. A crackdown was ordered. Eventually, two factions emerged; one group of workers desired to return to work while another wished to continue the strike. Violent riots broke out when striking workers prevented the others from returning to work. The riots began to assume communal colours as the workers who wished to continue the strike were mostly caste Hindus while those who desired to end it were largely Scheduled Castes. Ministers in the Madras government and ruling party members supported the strike. On 29 August 1921, the police opened fire and killed six of the workers on the spot. Top Justice Party leaders like O. Thanikachalam Chetti severely censured the police for the measures they adopted. The main reason was that the police was under the control of the governor and the government was looking for an opportunity to harass the executive. Another probable reason was that the striking workers had the caste sympathies of the Justice Party government whose ministers and chief whips were caste Hindus like themselves. The Justice Party leaders were extremely vociferous in their attacks on Paraiyars and the Labour Department. Their views were endorsed by the Raja of Panagal who joined Thanickachalam Chetti in admonishing the Paraiyars. The party's organ ''Justice'' blamed the riots on the "pampering" of Paraiyars by the Labour Department. M. C. Rajah, the leader of the Scheduled Castes in the Justice Party, in turn, retorted by describing the criticism of Scheduled Castes by Justice Party members as "the high-handed poisonous action of members of a party who after inflicting all known and unknown injury on our community shed crocodile tears and pose as friends of the Depressed classes". Though the B & C mills strike was eventually settled through the mediation of C. Natesa Mudaliar, the communal riots which had accompanied it estranged Scheduled Castes from the Justice Party. and was one of the reasons for Rajah quitting the party at a later stage.

Second general elections

Polling for the second general elections in the Madras Presidency began on 11 September 1923.

, Pg 183 However, owing to heavy rains, polling was not completed until 10 November. Though the Justice Party returned to power, its majority had been considerably reduced.

, Pg 184 Observers attribute this decline in performance to the rift between the

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

and Telugu members of the Justice party. Ramarayaningar assumed office as Chief Minister on 19 November 1923 and retained the same Cabinet with one change – K. V. Reddi Naidu, the Minister of Development was replaced with

T. N. Sivagnanam Pillai Diwan Bahadur Sir Tinnevely Nelliappa Sivagnanam Pillai (1 April 1861 – 13 June 1936) was an Indian lawyer, civil servant and politician from the Madras Presidency. He belonged to the Justice Party. He served as the Minister of Development i ...

. In 1923, the British government bestowed upon Ramarayaningar, the honorific title of "Raja of Panagal".

No-confidence motion

In 1923, a few prominent members of the Justice Party broke off to form the

United Nationalist Party The United Nationalist Party (UNP) was a political party in Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borde ...

and projected themselves as "Democrats". The dissidents were led by C. R. Reddy, a leader of the Justice Party,

, Pg 185 who complained of the dictatorial rule of the Raja and his insensitive, unimaginative policies. On 27 November 1923, a no-confidence motion was introduced against the government of the Raja of Panagal. The no-confidence motion was defeated by a margin of 65 votes to 44.

, Pg 186

Reforms

Ramarayaningar introduced a number of reforms during his tenure as Chief Minister. Hindu Religious Endowments Bill In 1921, the Raja of Panagal introduced the ''Hindu Religious Endowments Bill''.

, Pg 73 As per this bill, trusts were established to maintain temple funds and given complete power over the administration of temples. This act evoked severe protests from some sections of the assembly which felt that this was an intrusion in the religious affairs of the populace. However, the

Shankaracharya of Kanchi Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, also called the Sri Kanchi Matham or the Sri Kanchi Monastery or the Sarvagna Peetha, is a Hindu institution, located in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. It is located near a temple dedicated to Goddess Sri Kamakshi (Durg ...

gave his support to the bill even while expressing his concern over some of its provisions. Madras State Aid to Industries Act In 1922, the ''Madras State Aid to Industries Act'' was passed. Through this act, the government made it a state policy to advance loans to developing industries. It received less opposition in the assembly. This eventually became ''Madras Act V'' of 1923. Educational reforms The ''Madras University Act'' was passed in the year 1923. The bill was introduced by Education Minister Sir A. P. Patro.

, Pg 74 As per the provisions of this bill, the governing body of the Madras University was completely reorganised on democratic lines. The bill asserted that the governing body would henceforth be headed by a Chancellor who would be assisted by a pro-Chancellor who was usually the Minister of Education. Apart from the Chancellor and the pro-Chancellor who were elected, there was to be a Vice-Chancellor appointed by the Chancellor. In 1925, the ''Andhra University Act'' was passed which included similar reforms in Andhra University. However, the tenure of the Justice Party government of the Raja of Panagal is largely remembered for the introduction of caste-based reservations in 1921. In August 1921, the First communal Government Order (G.O. No.613) was passed. As per the order, 44 percent of jobs were reserved for non-Brahmins, 16 percent for Brahmins, 16 percent for Muslims, 16 percent for Anglo-Indians and Christians and eight percent for the

Scheduled Castes The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...

. In 1923, M. C. Rajah, a Justice Party leader from the Scheduled Caste community protested against the government order arguing that the act did not guarantee adequate representation of scheduled castes who he felt deserved 30% reservation in the administration and the services. When the Justice Party failed to respond, he resigned from the primary membership of the party. Dr. Gour's Bill ''Dr. Gour's Bill'', introduced in 1921, brought about an amendment in the Special Marriages Act, sanctioning the legal validity of inter-caste marriages.

, Pg 75 Municipal development The rapid growth of the population of Madras necessitated the expansion of the city and the creation of more residential colonies. To fulfill this requirement, the Madras Town Planning Act of 1920 had been passed on 7 September 1920 before the dyarchy was established. As per the provisions of this Act, numerous town planning measures were taken during the tenure of the Raja of Panagal. The long and broad Long Tank, which extended from

Nungambakkam Nungambakkam is a locality in downtown Chennai, India. The neighborhood abounds with multi-national commercial establishments, important government offices, foreign consulates, educational institutions, shopping malls, sporting facilities, to ...

Saidapet Saidapet, also known as Saidai, is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India, situated in the northern banks of the Adyar River and serves as an entry point to Central Chennai. It is surrounded by West Mambalam in the North, C.I.T Nagar in the North ...

, forming an arc along the city's western frontier, was drained out in 1923. The development of the tract to the west of the Long Tank had been initiated by the British Government in 1911 with the construction of a railway station at the village of Marmalan or

Mambalam West Mambalam is a residential and commercial area in Chennai, India. It is known for its shops, bazaars and Hindu temples. It is bounded by Kodambakkam to the north and Saidapet to the south. T. Nagar and Nandanam stretch all along its eastern ...

. Following the draining out of the Long Tank, the Justice Party government of the Raja of Panagal conceived the creation of a residential colony adjoining this little village. The residential colony was named Theagaroya Nagar after Justice Party stalwart Sir Pitti Theagaroya Chetty, who had died shortly before the township was inaugurated, and was centred around a park named Panagal Park after the Raja of Panagal. The streets in this new locality were named after prominent members of the Justice Party or officials in the municipal administration. Other reforms The Raja of Panagal reorganised the Public Works Department in the Presidency, improved medical facilities, water supply and communications in rural areas and patronised

Siddha ''Siddha'' (Sanskrit: '; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of physical as well as spiritual ...

medicine. Sir Muhammed Usman, later minister in the government of the

Raja of Bobbili Raja Sri Ravu Svetachalapati Sir Ramakrishna Ranga Rao KCIE (20 February 1901 – 10 March 1978) was an Indian politician and ''zamindar'' who served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 5 November 1932 to 4 April 1936 and 24 ...

was appointed Secretary of the Committee on siddha medicine. He also sponsored endowments to the University of Madras to produce scientific literature in Telugu.

President of the Justice Party

Theagaroya Chetty, the founder-President of the Justice Party died in 1925 and the Raja, then Chief Minister of Madras succeeded Chetty as the second President of the Justice Party. The Raja served as the President of the party until his death in 1928. image:RajaofPanagal.jpg, left, 200px, Statue of the Raja of Panagal inside Panagal Park,

Later years

Ramarayaningar was made a Order of the Indian Empire, Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire on 5 June 1926. In the Assembly elections which took place on 8 November 1926, no party was able to get a clean majority.

, Pg 189 The Swarajya Party won 41 of the 98 seats and emerged as the single largest party while the Justice party won 21. The Raja resigned as the Chief Minister of the Presidency as the popular verdict appeared to be against the Justice Party. As no party had a clean majority and the Swarajya Party which was the single largest party in the assembly was reluctant to form the government, the Governor appointed P. Subbarayan as the independent Chief Minister and nominated 34 members to the Council to support him.

, Pg 190 In 1927, the Simon Commission which was appointed to report on the working of the progress of the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms landed in India.

, Pg 191 The Swarajya Party moved a resolution to boycott the Commission and this was passed 61 to 50 with 12 remaining neutral.

, Pg 192 The Justice Party and the Swarajists supported the resolution while the Chief Minister P. Subbarayan opposed it and requested his ministers to resign. However, Lord Goschen, the Governor, was able to obtain the support of the Raja of Panagal by making a Justice Party member, M. Krishnan Nair, a Cabinet minister. Led by the Raja of Panagal, the Justice Party switched sides and lent its support to the Subbarayan government. Soon afterwards, the Justice Party passed a resolution welcoming the Simon Commission.

, Pg 193 The Simon Commission visited Madras on 28 February 1928 and 18 February 1929

, Pg 194 and was boycotted by the Swarajya Party and the Indian National Congress. However, the Justicites and the Subbarayan Government accorded the Commission a warm reception.

Death and legacy

Ramarayaningar died on 16 December 1928 of influenza. He was succeeded as the President of the Justice Party by

B. Munuswamy Naidu Bollini Munuswamy Naidu (1885 – 1935) was the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 27 October 1930 to 4 November 1932. He was conferred 'Rao Diwan Bahadur' by British Government. Munuswamy Naidu was born in Tiruttani, Madras Presid ...

. On his death, leading newspapers and magazines poured accolades on him.

S. Srinivasa Iyengar Seshadri Srinivasa Iyengar CIE (11 September 1874 – 19 May 1941), also seen as Sreenivasa Iyengar and Srinivasa Ayyangar, was an Indian lawyer, freedom-fighter and politician from the Indian National Congress. Iyengar was the Advocate-Genera ...

, a political opponent of the Raja, said of him: ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' paid rich tributes to the Raja: The Justice Party began to decline with the death of the Raja of Panagal. The lack of efficient leadership in the party is regarded as the main reason for its decline.

Ideology

Despite his aristocratic birth, Ramarayaningar was known for his egalitarian views.

, Pg 148 Despite the fact that he was regarded as a communalist and anti-Brahmin, he nominated a Brahmin,

T. Sadasiva Iyer Sir Thyagaraja Sadasiva Iyer (23 June 1861 – 1 December 1927) was an Indian people, Indian judge and theosophist who served as the Chief Justice of Travancore from 1905 to 1910. He was also the first President of the Hindu Religious and Char ...

as the Commissioner of the Hindu Religious Endowment Board. Ramarayaningar, however, strongly opposed what he perceived as the monopolisation of education by Brahmins. On being interviewed by Katherine Mayo, he responded: