Andanappa Jnanappa Doddameti (16 March 1908 – 21 February 1972) was an Indian statesman. He is known for his role in the

Unification of Karnataka The Unification of Karnataka or Karnataka Ekikarana refers to the formation of the Indian state of Karnataka (then named Mysore State) in 1956 when several Indian states were created by redrawing borders based on linguistic demographics. Dec ...

and his significant participation in the

Indian Independence Movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

Early life

Doddameti was born into a farming family of Jnanappa and Basamma in Jakkali village, Ron taluk, of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

(in present-day

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

) on 16 March 1908. Doddameti was an agriculturist through ancestry. He joined the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

in 1930. In 1933, he was named director of the Karnatak Provincial Congress Committee. He took part in the Non-Cooperation Movement of 1933. He was jailed for half a year and fined 2,000

Indian rupee The Indian rupee (symbol: ₹; code: INR) is the official currency of India. The rupee is subdivided into 100 '' paise'' (Hindi plural; singular: ''paisa''). The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India. The Reserve ...

s him for his role in the Ankola stir. Doddameti discontinued his education after class three. He was married a few months before he turned 18, and had two wives — Annapurna and Devikadevi.

Career

Doddameti founded the Dharwad District

Harijan Sevak Sangh Harijan Sevak Sangh, formerly All India Anti Untouchability League, 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 I ...

after his release from jail. He met

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

in the Yarvada jail, and sought his blessing for the work for upliftment of Harijans. Additionally, Doddameti served as the president of the Jamkhandi State People's Conference from 1932 to 1948. Doddameti was elected to the

Bombay Legislative Assembly Bombay Legislative Assembly came into existence in 1937, as the legislature of Bombay Presidency, a Provinces of India, province of India. It functioned until 1960, when separate states of Maharashtra and Gujarat were formed. History The first se ...

from the Dharwad North constituency in 1937. In 1938, he supported a motion for the creation of a Karnatak province, addressing the legislature in

Kannada language Kannada () is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, an ...

. He was the first legislator to speak in Kannada in the assembly. He was jailed during a 1940

satyagraha Satyāgraha (from ; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone who practises satyagraha is ...

. Previously, he was imprisoned during the Quit India movement of 1942, and spent thirty-three months in jail. Doddameti was re-elected to the Bombay Legislative Assembly in 1946. On 1 April 1947, he moved a resolution in the Legislative Assembly calling for the creation of a Karnatak province, which was adopted by the legislature with 60 votes in favour and 8 against. He was re-elected to the Bombay Legislative Assembly in the 1952 elections, representing the Ron constituency. He served as the Working President of the Karnatak Unification League. Doddameti was a Member of the Bombay Legislative Assembly until 1956. From 1956 onwards, he served as member of the Mysore Legislative Assembly. He was re-elected to the Mysore Legislative Assembly in 1957, 1962 and 1967.Election Commission of India.
Karnataka 1957
' In 1957 and 1966, he moved a resolutions in the Mysore Legislative Assembly, calling for the state to be renamed Karnataka. In 1968, Doddameti was named as Minister of State for Minor Irrigation in the Mysore state government. His tenure as Minister ended in March 1971. Doddameti died on 21 February 1972.

References

{{reflist 1908 births 1972 deaths Indian National Congress politicians from Karnataka Bombay State MLAs 1952–1957 Mysore MLAs 1952–1957 Mysore MLAs 1957–1962 Mysore MLAs 1962–1967 Mysore MLAs 1967–1972 Members of the Mysore Legislature kn:ಅಂದಾನಪ್ಪ ದೊಡ್ಡಮೇಟಿ