Sathyamurthy
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| Sathyamurthy | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: | August 19, 1887 |
| Place of birth: | Madras Presidency, British India |
| Date of death: | March 28, 1943 (aged 55) |
| Place of death: | Madras, India |
| Movement: | Indian independence movement |
| Major organizations: | Indian National Congress |
Sathyamurthy (b.August 19, 1887[1]-d.March 28, 1943) was a politician from the Indian National Congress and an Indian freedom fighter. He was a prominent leader of the Indian National Congress until his demise on March 28, 1943.
[edit] Life
Sathyamurthy was born on August 19, 1887 in the district of Pudukkottai. He completed his graduation in law and practised as an advocate prior to his initation in the national movement. He plunged into politics at an early age winning college elections and eventually emerging as one of the foremost leaders of the Indian National Congress and a doyen of the freedom movement. In 1919, when the Congress decide to send its representative to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (of the UK) to protest the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms and the Rowlatt Act, thirty-two year old Sathyamurthy was chosen as a delegate[2]. When Sathyamurthy was in U.K., he functioned as the London Correspondent of The Hindu, in place of the actual Correspondent who had taken 10-days leave.
Later in his life, he was elected mayor of Madras and served in his capacity as an able administrator from 1939 to 1940. He also served as a member of the Legislature. He was arrested in 1930 while trying to hoist the Indian national flag atop Parthasarathy Temple in Madras[3]. He was also actively involved in the Swadeshi movement and was arrested in 1942 for performin 'Individual satyagraha' at the height of the Quit India Movement. He was deported to Amravathi Jail in Nagpur and was hurt in the spinal cord during the journey. He succumbed to his injuries at General Hospital, Chennai on March 28, 1943.
The Hindu dedicated a whole column to Sathyamurthy under the caption 'Tribune of the people'. It said "He was a born freedom-fighter, a leadmine fighter as the Scots say to whom the fight was the thing."
[edit] Legacy
Sathyamurthy was one of the early leaders of the Indian National Congress in Tamil Nadu before the rise of Rajagopalachari and Kamaraj. His name is barely remembered today and is largely forgotten amidst a host of prominent personages. But the few who cherish his memory continue to credit him with popularizing the Congress and Gandhian ideals in Tamil Nadu. The Tamil Nadu state headquarters of the Indian National Congress has been named in his honour as 'Sathyamurthy Bhavan' in homage to the great man[4].
[edit] References
- ^ The Hindu:Glimpses of a great leader's life,August 22,2006
- ^ A born freedom-fighter and his close ties by Lakshmi Krishnamurti, The Hindu-125 Years Special Supplement, Sep 13,2003
- ^ The Life and Times of Sathyamurthy, Independence Day 2007 special on chennaionline.com
- ^ Address of Tamil Nadu State Congress from Tamil Nadu State Congress website
