Sir Thiruvarur Muthuswamy Iyer (28 January 183225 January 1895) was an Indian lawyer who, in 1877, became the first native Indian during the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
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or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
to be appointed as judge of the
Madras High Court. He also acted as the
Chief Justice of the Madras High Court in 1893. He is also one of the first Indians to have a statue.
On completion of his schooling, Iyer served in subordinate posts in the civil service even while continuing his education. Iyer graduated in law from the
Presidency College, Madras
Presidency College is an art, commerce, and science college in the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, India. On 16 October 1840, this school was established as the Madras Preparatory School before being repurposed as a high school, and then a gra ...
while serving as the
magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...
of police and served as a judge in mofussil centres from 1871 to 1877, when he was appointed to the bench of the High Court of Madras. Iyer served as a judge of the Madras High Court from 1877 till his death in 1895, even acting as the Chief Justice for three months in 1893.
Iyer was acclaimed for his sharp intellect, memory and legal expertise. He advocated
social reform
A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary move ...
and campaigned in support of women's education, widow remarriage and the legal recognition of ''
sambandham
Sambandham was an informal mode of marriage followed by Nairs, Samantha Kshatriyas, Kshatriyas, and Ambalavasis among their own communities as well as with the Nambudiris, in what is the present day state of Kerala, India. All of these were m ...
''. . In 1893, Iyer was made a
Knight Commander of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:
#Knight Grand Commander (GCIE)
#Knight Commander ( KCIE)
#Companion ( CIE)
No appo ...
in recognition of his services.
Early life
Iyer was born in a poor Brahmin family in Vuchuwadi, Madras Presidency,
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,
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or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
on 28 January 1832. Iyer's father, Venkata Narayana Sastri, died when Muthuswamy was young and he moved with his mother to
Thiruvarur
Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a town and municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and m ...
to make a living. At Thiruvarur, Iyer found employment as village accountant. However, his mother died soon afterward leaving Iyer with little support. At this time, he was known to have read under the street lamp at nights, while working in early morning and evening.
Around this time, Iyer's talents were recognised by the ''tahsildar'' Muthuswamy Naicker who arranged for the former to study at Sir Henry Montgomery's school in Madras as a companion to his young nephew, and there he won prizes and scholarships year after year.
Legal career
About this time, the Madras government instituted an examination for pleaders known as "Pleader's Test". In the examination held at
Kumbakonam in February 1856, only three succeeded, Iyer and
R. Raghunatha Rao
Diwan Bahadur Rai Raghunatha Rao (7 February 1831 – 3 May 1912) was an Indian civil servant, administrator, politician and Indian independence activist who served as the Diwan of Indore from 1875 to 1880 and 1886 to 1888. He was related ...
emerging first and second. On successfully passing the Pleader's Test, Iyer was appointed District Munsiff of
Tranquebar
Tharangambadi (), formerly Tranquebar ( da, Trankebar, ), is a town in the Mayiladuthurai district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu on the Coromandel Coast. It lies north of Karaikal, near the mouth of a distributary named Uppanar of the Kave ...
. On 2 July 1859, Iyer was appointed Deputy Collector of Tanjore. On 9 July 1865, Ier was appointed Sub-Judge of
South Canara
South Canara was a district of the Madras Presidency of British India, located at . It comprised the towns of Kassergode and Udipi and adjacent villages, with the capital in Mangalore city. South Canara was one of the most heterogeneous areas of ...
and served till July 1868, when he was appointed District Magistrate of police at Madras.
While serving as the magistrate of police, Iyer obtained his law degree law from the Presidency College, Madras.
He also held a degree in Sanskrit at that time.
Iyer commenced his legal career immediately after graduation. He was appointed a judge of the Court of Small Causes in 1871.
The very next year, he was made Fellow of
Madras University
The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...
.
In 1877, the Madras Government took the controversial decision to appoint him as the first Indian judge of the High Court of Madras.
Appointment to the bench of Madras High Court and controversy
In 1877, Iyer was appointed to the bench of the High Court of Madras. He was the first Indian to be appointed to this prestigious post.
However, Muthuswamy's appointment was vehemently condemned by a Madras newspaper called ''The Native Public Opinion''.
[
] This prompted a strong reaction from Indian nationalists who founded ''
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 ...
'' newspaper to voice public opinion against the outrage.
Later career
Muthuswami Iyer served as a judge of the Madras High Court from 1877 to 1895. He acted for three months in 1893 as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, the first Indian to do so.
Reforms
During his early career, Iyer also served as the President of the ''Malabar Marriage Commission''. During his tenure as President of the Commission, he campaigned for the legal recognition of
Sambandham
Sambandham was an informal mode of marriage followed by Nairs, Samantha Kshatriyas, Kshatriyas, and Ambalavasis among their own communities as well as with the Nambudiris, in what is the present day state of Kerala, India. All of these were m ...
and other forms of marriage practised in the
Malabar. In 1872, Iyer established the Widow Remarriage Association in Madras and advocated remarriage of Brahmin widows.
In 1872, he was nominated fellow of the Madras University. He became a
syndic in 1877. He was also invited to attend the Coronation Durbar at
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...
in 1877.
Honours
In 1878, Muthuswami Iyer was created a
Companion of the Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:
#Knight Grand Commander (GCIE)
#Knight Commander ( KCIE)
#Companion ( CIE)
No appoi ...
.
In 1893, he was knighted for his services to the Crown.
Death
Muthuswami Iyer died in January 1895 after an illness of ten days.
On his death,
Sir S. Subramania Iyer took the seat in the bench of the Madras High Court left vacant by his death.
A statue of Muthuswami Iyer was erected in the precincts of the Madras High Court campus. The section of Kamrajar Salai connecting Chepauk with the Madras High Court is known as T. Muthuswamy Salai.
Notes
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Iyer, T. Muthuswamy
1832 births
1895 deaths
Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire
Indian knights
Presidency College, Chennai alumni
19th-century Indian lawyers
People from Tiruvarur district
Chief Justices of the Madras High Court
20th-century Indian judges