Sir Vijay Raghubar Singh,KBE was an Indo-Fijian lawyer and politician who held Cabinet office in the 1960s and 1970s. Vijay Singh served in Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara's government in a variety of positions,including Attorney-General,and was president of the Indian Alliance,a division of the ruling Alliance Party. He quit the party in 1979 following disagreement with Alliance leadership and later joined the opposition National Federation Party. Vijay Singh was involved in the restructure of the Fiji sugar industry and was a leading member of the Jaycees movement in Fiji.
Ambalal Dahyabhai Patel, better known as A.D. Patel,was an Indo-Fijian politician,farmers' leader and founder and leader of the National Federation Party. Patel was uncompromisingly committed to a vision of an independent Fiji,with full racial integration. He was one of the first to advocate a republic,an ideal not realized in his lifetime. He also advocated a common voters' roll and opposed the communal franchise that characterized Fijian politics.
Badri Maharaj was an Indo-Fijian farmer,politician,and philanthropist. He was the first Indian member of the Legislative Council serving for two periods between 1916 and 1923 and 1926 to 1929 as a nominated member,but he was not a popular choice for Fiji Indians,who preferred the lawyer,Manilal Doctor to be their representative. Despite his unpopularity,he was a man of principle and resigned from the Council in protest at what he believed was an unfair imposition of poll tax on the Fiji Indian people. He proposed an innovative system of Indian administration (panchayat) and showed himself to be ahead of his time by opposing child marriage and promoting education.
Pt. Vishnu Deo OBE was the first Fiji born and bred leader of the Indo-Fijians. From his initial election to the Legislative Council in 1929 to his retirement in 1959,he remained the most powerful Indo-Fijians political leader in Fiji. He was a staunch supporter of Arya Samaj in Fiji and also the editor of the first successful Hindi-language newspaper to be published in Fiji.
James Ranchandar Rao was one of the three Indo-Fijians elected to the Legislative Council of Fiji in October 1929 when Indo-Fijians were given the first opportunity to elect their own representatives in the 1929 elections. The other two were Vishnu Deo and Parmanand Singh.
Kunwar Bachint Singh was an Indo-Fijian teacher and politician. He arrived in Fiji in 1927 as a teacher for the Arya Samaj but his association with Vishnu Deo led him to play an active role in aggressively promoting the Arya Samaj and finally into politics. He was elected into the Legislative Council as a protégéof Vishnu Deo but after the election took an independent stance opposed to the wishes of the majority of the Indo-Fijians. He supported nominated rather than elected representation,actively supported the war effort and even attempted to set up a farmers union opposed to a number of existing unions. The Government rewarded him for his loyalty by nominating him into the Legislative Council three times,appointing him as a Justice of the Peace and as the first Indo-Fijian member of the Executive Council.
The Arya Samaj was the first religious,cultural and educational Fiji Indian organisation established in Fiji. From its inception,in 1904,it attracted the young,educated and progressive Hindus into its fold. During the first three decades of the twentieth century,it was the sole voice of the Indian community in Fiji and as Fiji Indians won political rights,it was not surprising that first Indian members of the Legislative Council were all Arya Samajis. The influence of Arya Samaj over the Indians in Fiji gradually waned as other organisations representing Indians were established but it remained the dominant force in politics until 1959. The modern day Arya Samaj in Fiji still speaks out on issues affecting its members and its activities are visible through the numerous educational institutions that it manages.
Chandersen Chattur Singh was an Indo-Fijian politician. He caused a major sensation in the 1937 elections when he defeated A. D. Patel,a well known lawyer and political ally of Vishnu Deo.
Ayodhya Prasad Sharma was an Indo-Fijian farmers' leader and politician. He formed the most successful farmers' union in Fiji and forced the Colonial Sugar Refining Company to make concessions to farmers after 60 years of total control over Fiji's economy. However,other Indo-Fijian leaders formed rival unions and his initial success was not repeated. He also served as a member of the Legislative Council between 1953 and 1959.
Pandit Ami Chandra Vidyalankar was an Indo-Fijian educator,preacher,labour leader,politician and football administrator. He served as a member of the Legislative Council between 1947 and 1953.
Muniswamy Mudaliar was an Indo-Fijian politician who was a member of the Legislative Council from 1932 to 1937. In 1933 he became Fiji's first Indo-Fijian Justice of the Peace.
Fiji Samachar was a Hindi language newspaper published in Fiji from 1924 to 1974. It was published in Suva by the Indian Printing and Publishing Company and its first editor was Babu Ram Singh. It started as a bi-lingual Hindi and English Monthly newspaper but from 1935 became a weekly Hindi newspaper. The editorial committee was headed by Pandit Vishnu Deo and included Pandit Ami Chandra and Pandit Gopendra Narayan Pathik,all active members of the Arya Samaj in Fiji and consequently the newspaper was seen as the mouthpiece of the Arya Samaj. In the 1930s Vishnu Deo became the editor.
Babu Ram Singh was a Fiji Indian who had come to Fiji under the indenture system and was one of the few people who,after indenture,prospered and made an attempt to help his less fortunate ex-indentured brethren. Babu Ram Singhs surviving Business,Fiji Rubber Stamp Co Ltd is still under operation in Mark Street,Suva,and is looked after by his children.
The number of Fiji Indians that could be elected to the Legislative Council was fixed over the years as follows:
Mirza Salim Buksh was an Indo-Fijian community leader. One of the first Indo-Fijians to gain a formal education,he was chosen as one of the representatives of the Indian community on a number of occasions. He helped form and supported a number of social and religious organisations. He also served one term as a nominated member in the Legislative Council.
Hindu Maha Sabha was an organisation representing various Hindu organisations and was formed in Fiji in 1926,following the formation of All-India Hindu Maha Sabha in India. The formation of the organisation both in India and Fiji occurred after the assassination of Swami Shraddhanand,a Hindu activist in India. The formation of the Sabha in Fiji coincided with the formation of a national Muslim organisation,the Fiji Muslim League.
This is a synopsis of organisations formed by Indians in Fiji. When they became free from the bondage of indenture and were able to organise themselves,they founded numerous organizations to seek social and political justice. These organisations promoted the teaching of Indian languages and religious practices and also to help others in time of need. Some of the successful organisations are listed below in the order in which they were established. Some,such as the National Federation Party,are no longer exclusively Indian,but are still predominantly so.
The Indian Association of Fiji is the name used by organisations established in Fiji seeking to unite different groups within the Fiji Indian community to facilitate the plight of Indians in Fiji.
Indo-Fijians or Indian-Fijians are Fijian citizens of Indian descent,and include people who trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent. Although Indo-Fijians constituted a majority of Fiji's population from 1956 through the late 1980s,discrimination and the resulting brain drain resulted in them numbering 313,798 (37.6%) out of a total of 827,900 people living in Fiji as of 2007.
