Chakravarti Rajagopalachari BR, popularly known as Rajaji or C.R., also known as Mootharignar Rajaji, was an Indian statesman, writer, lawyer, and Indian independence activist. Rajagopalachari was the last Governor-General of India, as when India became a republic in 1950 the office was abolished. He was also the only Indian-born Governor-General, as all previous holders of the post were British nationals. He also served as leader of the Indian National Congress, Premier of the Madras Presidency, Governor of West Bengal, Minister for Home Affairs of the Indian Union and Chief Minister of Madras state. Rajagopalachari founded the Swatantra Party and was one of the first recipients of India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna. He vehemently opposed the use of nuclear weapons and was a proponent of world peace and disarmament. During his lifetime, he also acquired the nickname 'Mango of Salem'.
As of 2024, 22 languages have been classified as recognised languages under the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India. There is no designated national language of India.
Prathivadhi Bhayankara Sreenivas widely known as P. B. S. was an Indian playback singer, composer, harmonium player, Lyricist and poet known for his works in South cinema, and Bollywood. His major chunk of work has been in Kannada, Tamil and Telugu languages, though he sang many songs in Malayalam and Hindi too. He has garnered the Kannada Rajyotsava Prashasti, the Tamil Kalaimamani Award, and the Madhavapeddi Satyam Award by the Andhra Siva Foundation, for his contributions to music and cinema. In his honor, Sri Kala Sudha Telugu Association of Chennai, instituted the P. B. Sreenivas Mahapurush Award to honor veteran singers.
Devdas Mohandas Gandhi was the fourth and youngest son of Mahatma Gandhi. He was born in the Colony of Natal and came to India with his parents as a grown man. He became active in his father's movement, spending many terms in jail. He also became a prominent journalist, serving as editor of Hindustan Times. He was also the first pracharak of the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha (DBHPS), established by Mohandas Gandhi in Tamil Nadu in 1918. The purpose of the Sabha was to propagate Hindi in southern India.
Poosapati Sanjeevi Kumaraswamy Raja was an Indian politician who served as the last Prime Minister of Madras Province from 6 April 1949 to 26 January 1950 and first Chief Minister of Madras State from 26 January 1950 to 10 April 1952 and Governor of Orissa between 1954 till 1956. He was born in Rajapalayam in Tamil Nadu.
Politics in South India is typically dominated by regional parties than by the larger national political parties such as the Indian National Congress (INC), Communist Party of India (Marxist) or Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, both the BJP, INC and CPI(M) have had some success in forging alliances with regional parties. Unlike in North India, where religion plays an important role in driving local politics, South India's political issues of contention are mainly language and ethnicity.
Minjur Bhakthavatsalam was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the chief minister of Madras State from 2 October 1963 to 6 March 1967. He was the last Congress chief minister of Tamil Nadu and the last to have taken part in the Indian independence movement.
The anti-Hindi-imposition agitations in Tamil Nadu have been ongoing intermittently in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu since the early 20th century. The agitations involve several mass protests, riots, student and political movements in Tamil Nadu concerning the official status of Hindi in the state.
Dr. M. N. Singaramma (1920–2006) was a scholar, writer and social activist from Mandya in Karnataka, Southern India. She wrote many philosophical books and articles under the pen name Sridevi.
The following outline is provided as an overview of, and topical guide to, India:
Mylai Ponnuswamy Sivagnanam, popularly known as Ma.Po.Si., was an Indian politician, freedom fighter, and the founder of the political party Tamil Arasu Kazhagam. He wrote more than 100 books.
MoturiSatyanarayana was an Indian independence activist alongside Mohandas Gandhi until 1947 and then a member of the Constituent Assembly of India which drafted the Indian Constitution. He was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha till 1966. He was instrumental in making Hindi an official language in the Indian Constitution, while tolerating the other major Indian languages. He devoted his later life to helping spread Hindi in South India.
The second legislative assembly election for the Madras Presidency after the establishment of a bicameral legislature by the Government of India Act of 1935 was held in 1946. The election was held after 6 years of Governor's rule starting from 1939, when the Indian National Congress government of C. Rajagopalachari resigned protesting Indian involvement in World War II. This was the last election held in the presidency - after Indian independence in 1947, the presidency became the Madras state. The election was held simultaneously with that of the Legislative Council. The Congress swept the polls by winning 163 out of 215 seats. The years after this election saw factionalism in Madras Congress party with divisions across regional and communal lines. Competition among T. Prakasam, C. Rajagopalachari and K. Kamaraj resulted in the election of Prakasam as the prime minister initially. But he was later defeated by Omandur Ramaswamy Reddiar with Kamaraj's support. In turn, Reddiar himself was ousted to make way for P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja with the support of Kamaraj.
The second legislative council election for the Madras Presidency after the establishment of a bicameral legislature by the Government of India Act of 1935 was held in March 1946. The election was held after 6 years of Governor's rule starting from 1939, when the Indian National Congress government of C. Rajagopalachari resigned protesting Indian involvement in World War II. This was the last direct election held for the Madras Legislative Council in the presidency - after Indian independence in 1947, the presidency became the Madras state and direct elections to the council were abolished. The election was held simultaneously with that of the Legislative Assembly. The Congress swept the polls by winning 32 out of 46 seats. The years after this election saw factionalism in Madras Congress party with divisions across regional and communal lines. Competition among T. Prakasam, C. Rajagopalachari and K. Kamaraj resulted in the election of Prakasam as the Prime Minister initially. But he was later defeated by Omandur Ramaswamy Reddiar with Kamaraj's support. In turn, Reddiar himself was ousted to make way for P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja with the support of Kamaraj.
The anti-Hindi imposition agitation of 1937–1940 refers to a series of protests that happened in Madras Province of British India during 1937–1940. It was launched in 1937 in opposition to the introduction of compulsory teaching of Hindi in the schools of the province by the Indian National Congress government led by C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji). This move was immediately opposed by E. V. Ramasamy (Periyar) and the opposition Justice Party. The agitation, which lasted for about 30 months, was multifaceted and involved fasts, conferences, marches, picketing and protests. The government responded with a crackdown resulting in the death of two protesters and the arrest of 1,198 persons including women and children. The mandatory Hindi education was later withdrawn by the British governor of Madras Lord Erskine in February 1940 after the resignation of the Congress government in 1939.
Tennur is a business locality in the city of Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, India. It is situated close to the Mahatma Gandhi market and forms a part of the Abhishekapuram zone of the Tiruchirappalli Municipal Corporation. The Tiruchirappalli branch of the Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha is located here.
Ambujammal Desikachari née Srinivasa Iyengar (1899-1983) was an Indian independence activist and women's rights activist. A Gandhian, she participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement and served as vice-president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee. Ambujammal was awarded the Padma Shri in 1964.
Nirmala S Maurya is the first woman vice chancellor of Veer Bahadur Singh Purvanchal University, Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh who served the office from August 2020 till August 2023. Former Registrar of Higher Education and Research Institute, Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha, Madras. Her father, Surendra Singh Kushwaha, was a professor in the physics department of Banaras Hindu University and also served as VC of Ranchi University, Jharkhand and Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith, Uttar Pradesh, and her brother Saket Kushwaha served as vice chancellor of Lalit Narayan Mithila University from 2014 to 2017 and also served as vice chancellor of Rajiv Gandhi University from 2018 to 2024.
