Swadeshabhimani (newspaper)
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''Swadeshabhimani'' () was a newspaper published in the
Kingdom of Travancore The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...
, which was banned and confiscated by the Government of Travancore in 1910 due to its criticisms against the government and the Diwan of Travancore, P. Rajagopalachari.


History

Vakkom Muhammed Abdul Khadir Moulavi alias
Vakkom Moulavi Vakkom Mohammed Abdul Khader Moulavi ( – ), popularly known as Vakkom Moulavi was a social reformer, teacher, prolific writer, Muslim scholar, journalist, freedom fighter and newspaper proprietor in Travancore, a princely state of the pre ...
founded the weekly newspaper on 19 January 1905, to spearhead the fight against corruption and to struggle for the democratic rights of the people in Travancore. He managed to import, directly from England, an automatic flatbed printing press, the latest type then available. The press operated from ''Anjuthengu (Anglican: Anjengo)'', a British colony at the time directly ruled by
British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
. C P Govinda Pillai was the editor of before Ramakrishna Pillai took over as the editor in January 1906. Ramakrishna Pillai and his family had to shift to
Vakkom Vakkom is a area of Trivandrum Metropolitan Area near Kadakkavoor in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala, India. It is 35 km north of Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital. Vakkom panchayat is surrounded by back waters (Kayal). Neighbourin ...
in Chirayinkil Taluk where the newspaper office and the printing press were located. In July 1907, both the newspaper office and the family moved to
Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...
. Though Vakkom Moulavi was still the proprietor, Ramakrishna had been given total freedom in the running of the newspaper by Moulavi. Although there were never any legal or financial contracts between the two, Moulavi provided all the financial aid to set up the press. On 26 September 1910, the newspaper and the printing press were sealed and confiscated by the Indian Imperial Police. Ramakrishna Pillai was arrested and banished from Travancore to
Thirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...
in
Madras Province The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including the ...
of
British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
. ::"Many nationalists and Indian newspapers reacted to the arrest and banishment of Ramakrishna Pillai and the banning of the paper. However, countering the king and the British Government that overruled the king, was not easy. Yet, early in the first half of the twenties, the banned newspaper was revived by the mighty will of K. Kumar of Travancore, the veteran Gandhian and Freedom Fighter. He viewed the revival as a befitting tribute to Ramakrishna Pillai. Kumar himself was its manager and chief-editor. He was assisted in his efforts by K. Narayana Kurukkal, a close colleague of Ramakrishna Pillai and the author of the novels: "Parappuram" and "Udayabhanu" besides Barrister A K Pillai. Ramakrishna Pillai's wife, B. Kalyani Amma, Pillai's associates K. Narayana Kurukkal, R. Narayana Panikker and the famous political-journalist Raman Menon and K. Kumar himself were regular contributors to the magazine. The paper was revived under the same name 'Swadeshabhimani' and had its headquarters in the building currently housing the DPI Office at Thycaud, Thiruvananthapuram. In spite of all these, the government wisely chose to remain silent. The new 'Swadeshabhimani' was re-modeled after "Modern Review" of Ramand Chatterjee. It continued its legacy as a significant force transforming the socio-political life of Kerala. K. Kumar had great admiration for Ramakrishna Pillai and he took the lead role in organizing the deportation-day of Pillai as "Ramakrishna Pillai Day" (from M.E: 10-02-1098) and erecting his statue in Trivandrum. Ramakrishna Pillai Day continued to be commemorated in Trivandrum for a long time thereafter. 8It appears that the editorship of Swadeshabhimani passed on to A.K Pillai (by 1932) who also edited the "Swarat" with the help and support of K. Kumar."
(Quoted from Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai, Wikipedia) In 1957, after the Independence of India, the Government of Kerala returned the press to Moulavi's family and son Abdul Kadar. On 26 January 1968, the then Chief Minister of
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
, E. M. S. Namboodiripad, presented it to the legal heirs of Maulavi Abdul Qadir at a public meeting, 36 years after his death.


See also

* Media in Kerala *
Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai K. Ramakrishna Pillai (1878–1916) was an Indian nationalist writer, journalist, editor, and political activist. He edited '' Swadeshabhimani'' (The Patriot), the newspaper which became a potent weapon against the rule of the British and th ...
*
Vakkom Moulavi Vakkom Mohammed Abdul Khader Moulavi ( – ), popularly known as Vakkom Moulavi was a social reformer, teacher, prolific writer, Muslim scholar, journalist, freedom fighter and newspaper proprietor in Travancore, a princely state of the pre ...


References


External links


Svadesabhimani.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swadeshabhimani (Newspaper) Malayalam-language newspapers Weekly newspapers published in India Defunct newspapers published in India Publications disestablished in 1910 Newspapers established in 1905 1905 establishments in India 1910 disestablishments in India Banned newspapers