Paramasiva Subbarayan (11 September 1889 – 6 October 1962) was an Indian politician,

freedom fighter A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

and diplomat and was the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency, India's ambassador to Indonesia and Union Minister of Transport and Communications in

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian Anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India du ...

's government. He was the father of General P. P. Kumaramangalam who served as India's Chief of Army staff and politician Mohan Kumaramangalam. He was also the grandfather of INC and

BJP The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Mo ...

politician and Union Minister

Rangarajan Kumaramangalam Phanindranath Rangarajan Kumaramangalam (12 May 1952 – 23 August 2000) was a prominent politician of the Indian National Congress and later the Bharatiya Janata Party and a Member of parliament, Lok Sabha from the Salem constituency from 1 ...

. Subbarayan was born on 11 September 1889 in the family estate at Kumaramangalam,

Salem district Salem District is one of the 38 districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The district is now divided into Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, Namakkal as individual districts. Salem is the district headquarters and other major towns in the dis ...

and had his education at Presidency College,

University of Dublin The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dub ...

, the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniq ...

. In 1922, he was nominated to the

Madras Legislative Council Tamil Nadu Legislative Council was the upper house of the former bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It began its existence as Madras Legislative Council, the first provincial legislature for Madras Presidency. It was initi ...

. He served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 4 December 1926 to 27 October 1930. In 1933, Subbarayan joined the Indian National Congress and served as the Minister of Law and Education in

Rajaji Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (10 December 1878 – 25 December 1972), popularly known as Rajaji or C.R., also known as Mootharignar Rajaji (Rajaji'', the Scholar Emeritus''), was an Indian statesman, writer, lawyer, and independence activis ...

's cabinet and the Minister of Police and Home in

Ramaswamy Reddiar Omandur Ramasamy Reddiyar (1 February 1895 – 25 August 1970) was an Indian freedom-fighter and politician of the Indian National Congress. He served as the Premier of Madras Presidency from 23 March 1947 to 6 April 1949. Early life Oma ...

's cabinet. Subbarayan participated and was imprisoned in the

Quit India Movement The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule in ...

. He served as independent India's ambassador to Indonesia and as Union Minister from 1959 to 1962. Subbarayan died on 6 October 1962 at the age of 73. He was the

Governor of Maharashtra The governor of Maharashtra is the ceremonial head of the state of Maharashtra. The Constitution of India confers the executive powers of the state to the governor, however the de facto executive powers lie with the Council of Ministers. Bhagat ...

until his death.

Early life and education

Subbarayan was born to Paramasiva Gounder in the family estate of Kumaramangalam near

Tiruchengode Tiruchengode is a city and selection grade municipality located in southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is famous for the ancient hilltop temple of Umaiorubagan (Arthanāreeshwara), dedicated to the unique combined male-female form of Lord S ...

Namakkal district Namakkal District is one of the 38 districts (an administrative district) in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The district was bifurcated from Salem District with Namakkal town as headquarters on 25 July 1996 and started to function independentl ...

on 11 September 1889. He belonged to the family of Zamindars. He graduated from the Presidency College and obtained his M.A. and LLD from the

and the

respectively. He started practising as an advocate of the

Madras High Court The Madras High Court is a High Court in India. It has appellate jurisdiction over the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. It is located in Chennai, and is the third oldest high court of India after the Calcutta High C ...

in 1918.

Politics

In 1922, Subbarayan was nominated to the

as an independent candidate representing the landowners of the South-Central division of the

Madras Presidency 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 ...

and served as a Council Secretary. South Indian Celebrities, Pg 101 He took the side of

C. R. Reddy Sir Cattamanchi Ramalinga Reddy (10 December 1880 – 24 February 1951), also popularly known as Sir C. R. Reddy, was an educationist and political thinker, essayist and economist, poet and literary critic. He was a prominent member of the Just ...

and the Swarajists and voted against the Raja of Pangal during the no-confidence motion of 1923.

As Chief Minister of Madras Presidency

In the Assembly elections which took place on 8 November 1926, no party was able to get a clean majority.

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 189 The

Swaraj Party The Swaraj Party, established as the ''Congress-Khilafat Swaraj Party'', was a political party formed in India on 1 January 1923 after the Gaya annual conference in December 1922 of the National Congress, that sought greater self-government and ...

won 41 of the 98 seats and emerged as the single largest party while the Justice Party won 21. It was a setback for the Justice Party and its incumbent Chief Minister, the

Raja of Panagal Raja Sir Panaganti Ramarayaningar KCIE (9 July 1866 – 16 December 1928), also known as the Raja of Panagal, was a ''zamindar'' of Kalahasti, a Justice Party leader and the Chief Minister or Premier of Madras Presidency from 11 July 1921 ...

. However, none of the parties could form the Government as they did not have a clean majority. The Governor invited the Swarajya Party to take the lead in forming a coalition government but the latter refused. The Justice Party did not have enough seats. Hence, the Governor chose Subbarayan, who was not affiliated to either of these parties, to form the Government and nominated 34 new members to the Madras Legislative Council to support him. An independent ministry was formed with A. Ranganatha Mudaliar and R. N. Arogyaswamy Mudaliar as the second and third ministers. The Justice Party took the place of an opposition.

, Pg 190 Because Subbarayan's regime was appointed and largely controlled by the Governor, it became the target of strong criticism both from the Justicites as well as the Swarajists. In March 1927,

P. 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 Preside ...

of the Justice Party passed a motion recommending salary cuts for Government ministers. However, they were defeated by a margin of 41 votes. A no-confidence motion was passed on 23 August 1927, but was defeated 56 to 67 with the support of the Governor and the members nominated by him.

, Pg 191 The Simon Commission was appointed by the British Parliament in 1927 to report on the working of the progress of the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms. The Swarajya Party moved a resolution to boycott the commission and this was passed 61 to 50 with 12 remaining neutral.

, Pg 192 Subbarayan opposed the resolution but his cabinet ministers Ranganatha Mudaliar and Arogyaswamy Mudaliar supported it. Subbarayan resigned as Chief Minister, but at the same time, he also compelled his ministers to submit their resignations. Fearing the possibility of the formation of a Swarajya Party-Justice Party coalition Government, the Governor stepped in to foster discord amongst the opposition. In order to obtain the support of the Raja of Panagal, he appointed Krishnan Nair, a leading member of the Justice Party as his Law Member. 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. In the 1930 elections, due to the non-participation of the Indian National Congress and the Swarajya Party, the Justice Party won an overwhelming majority and was voted to power. Subbarayan was succeeded as Chief Minister by Munuswamy Naidu.

, Pg 196

Reforms

The

government had introduced the Communal Government Order (G. O. No. 613) in 1921 which introduced reservations in the Presidency. However, the provisions of this act were not implemented till 1927. The Subbarayan government, therefore, introduced the Communal G. O. Ms No. 1021 to implement the 1921 order. South Indian Celebrities, Pg 107 The act was introduced by S. Muthiah Mudaliar, the Education Minister in Subbarayan's cabinet on 11 April 1927. This act, it is believed, introduced provisions for reservations for

Dalits Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...

and increased representation for Indian Christians and Muslims. At the same time, it reduced the reservations for Brahmins from 22% to 16% and non-Brahmins from 48% to 42%. This act was in effect till India's independence on 15 August 1947. Subbarayan introduced the Madras District Municipalities Act and Local Boards Act during his tenure. The

Annamalai University , logo = CampusmapofAU.jpg , image = Annamalai University logo.png , image_size = 225px , motto = "With Courage and Faith" , established = , type ...

, founded by Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiar was opened by Subbarayan in

Chettinad Chettinad (also known as Chettinadu) is a region located mainly in the Sivaganga district historically ruled by Ramnad kingdom of Pandya Nadu and has a small portion extending into the Pudukottai District in Tamil Nadu, India..Karaikudi and ...

in 1929. The Annamalai University is the first residential university in Madras Presidency.

From 1930 to 1937

Subbarayan was re-elected as an independent to the Madras Legislative Council in 1930. As a member of the legislature, Subbarayan was instrumental in introducing

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

in 1930. Prohibition was enforced in Salem till 1943 when it was scrapped by the British. In 1932,

C. S. Ranga Iyer C. S. Ranga Iyer (1895–1963) was an Indian journalist, politician, Indian independence activist and social reformer. Personal life C. S. Ranga Iyer was born in the Madras Presidency in 1895. He had his education in Madras Presidency and on c ...

passed the Untouchability Abolition Bill in the

Imperial Legislative Council 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 ...

. On 1 November 1932, Subbarayan proposed the Temple Entry Bill which permitted low-caste Hindus and Dalits enter Hindu temples and made their prohibition illegal and punishable. South Indian Celebrities, Pg 108 He also passed a copy of the resolution and the proceedings of the council to

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

who was in jail. The Viceroy, however, refused permission explaining that temple entry was an all-India problem and should not be dealt with in a provincial basis even while clearing Ranga Iyer's bill. The Temple Entry Bill was not passed until the Indian National Congress came to power in 1937. Subbarayan had been a follower of Mahatma Gandhi from his early days and he officially joined 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 ...

in 1933. He also served as the President of the Tamil Nadu

Harijan Sevak Sangh Harijan Sevak Sangh is a non-profit organisation founded by Mahatma Gandhi in 1932 to eradicate untouchability in India, working for Harijan or Dalit people and upliftment of Depressed Class of India. It is headquartered at Kingsway Camp in De ...

In the state cabinet and the Quit India Movement

Subbarayan was an admirer of

leader Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (Rajaji) right from his early days. Rajaji had been his personal lawyer in property cases. In 1937, when the Indian National Congress swept to power in the Madras Presidency and Rajaji took over as the Chief Minister of the Presidency, he appointed Subbarayan the Minister of Law and Education. Subbarayan resigned along with other members of the Rajaji cabinet when

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

was declared in 1939. Subbarayan also served as the President of the

Board of Control for Cricket in India The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body for cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at Cricket centre, Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The BCCI is the richest governing body of cricket in the worl ...

from 1937–38 to 1945–46. Subbarayan actively participated in the

and was arrested along with other Congress leaders as Sathyamurthy and M. Bakthavatsalam. In 1947, he served as a Minister for Home and Police in the

Cabinet in Madras and was a member of the

Constituent Assembly of India The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the 'Provincial Assembly'. Following India's independence from the British rule in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament as ...

. He served as a member of the Provincial Constitution Committee.

India's Ambassador to Indonesia

From 1949 to 1951, Subbarayan served as independent India's first ambassador to Indonesia. He was instrumental in the signing of a mutual treaty of friendship with the Indonesian Foreign Minister

Mohammad Roem Mohammad Roem (; May 16, 1908 – September 24, 1983) was a diplomat and one of Indonesia's leaders in the Indonesian war for independence. During the Sukarno presidency, he served as Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, and later Minis ...

on 3 March 1951. Subbarayan's tenure came to an end in 1951 and he was succeeded by Alagappan. On his return to India, Subbarayan was elected president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC).

Member of Indian Parliament

Subbarayan also served as a member of

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

from 1954 to 1957. In 1957, Subbarayan was elected to the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-p ...

from

and served as a member till 1962. He was elected again in 1962 but was instead made

. Subbarayan was a member of the first Official Language Commission constituted by Prime Minister

on 7 June 1955, under the chairmanship of B. G. Kher. The commission delivered its report on 31 July 1956. It recommended a number of steps to eventually replace English with

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

as the sole official language of India. Subbarayan and another member –

Suniti Kumar Chatterji Bhashacharya Acharya Suniti Kumar Chatterjee (26 November 1890 – 29 May 1977) was an Indian linguist, educationist and litterateur. He was a recipient of the second-highest Indian civilian honour of Padma Vibhushan. Life Childhood Chatterji ...

from

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

– did not agree with its findings and added dissenting notes to the report. Later when the Indian President

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...

sought his opinion on making Hindi as the sole official language, Subbarayan advised against it.

In the Union cabinet

Subbarayan served as the Minister of Transport and Communications in the Government of India union cabinet from 1959 to 1962.

Other interests

Subbarayan took a keen interest in sports during his lifetime. He wrote numerous articles on

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

and was the Founder-president of the Indian Cricket Federation, the first association in the Madras Presidency to represent Indian cricketing interests. He also served as the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) during the Second World War. With Sir John Beaumont and Sikandar Hayat Khan, he formed the commission that investigated the return of

Lala Amarnath Lala Amarnath Bharadwaj (11 September 1911 - 5 August 2000) was an Indian cricketer. He scored a century on test debut and became the first player to score a century for the India national cricket team in Test cricket. He was independent India ...

from the India's tour of England in 1936. He also served as the president of the Madras Olympic Association and the Madras Hockey Association.

Death

Subbarayan died at the age of 73 on 6 October 1962.

Family and legacy

Subbarayan married Kailash Radhabai Kulmud, a Mangalorean

Brahmo Bengali Brahmos are those who adhere to Brahmoism, the philosophy of Brahmo Samaj which was founded by Raja Rammohan Roy. A recent publication describes the disproportionate influence of Brahmos on India's development post-19th Century as unpa ...

of Brahmin parentage, who was his colleague in Presidency College, by Brahmo rites despite opposition from family members.

Radhabai Subbarayan Kailash Radhabai Subbarayan, ''nee'' Kudmul (22 April 1891 - 1960) was an Indian politician, women's rights activist and social reformer. She was the wife of Indian politician P. Subbarayan and mother of Mohan Kumaramangalam, P. P. Kumaramanga ...

was an active campaigner for women's rights and served as a member of the Indian parliament. Subbarayan's eldest son Mohan Kumaramangalam was a minister in Indira Gandhi's cabinet. His second son, General P. P. Kumaramangalam was a

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

veteran and served as India's Chief of Army staff. A third son Gopal Kumaramangalam headed important public sector undertakings. Mohan's son and Subbarayan's grandson

was a minister in Indian National Congress and NDA governments. Subbarayan's daughter

Parvathi Krishnan Parvathi Krishnan (15 March 1919 – 20 February 2014) was an Indian politician from the Communist Party of India. She was a three time former Member of Parliament representing Coimbatore Lok Sabha constituency and Rajya Sabha member. She was t ...

was a politician belonging to the

Communist Party of India Communist Party of India (CPI) is the oldest Marxist–Leninist communist party in India and one of the nine national parties in the country. The CPI was founded in modern-day Kanpur (formerly known as Cawnpore) on 26 December 1925. H ...

. She was a Member of the

from 1954 to 1957 and represented

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbat ...

in the

three times. A portrait of Subbarayan was unveiled in the central hall of the Indian Parliament on 16 October 1989.

Notes

References

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Subbarayan, P. 1889 births 1962 deaths Union Ministers from Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu politicians Indian cricket administrators Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu Governors of Maharashtra Brahmos Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Alumni of the University of London Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Presidency College, Chennai alumni Tamil Nadu ministers Members of the Constituent Assembly of India Ambassadors of India to Indonesia People from Salem district Madras Presidency Indian independence activists from Tamil Nadu India MPs 1957–1962 India MPs 1962–1967 Lok Sabha members from Tamil Nadu University of Madras alumni Kumaramangalam family Presidents of the Board of Control for Cricket in India People from Namakkal district