The anti-Hindi imposition agitation of 1937–1940 refers to a series of protests that happened in
Madras Province
The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency in ...
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 ...
during 1937–1940. It was launched in 1937 in opposition to the introduction of compulsory teaching of
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
in the schools of the province by 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 ...
government led by
C. Rajagopalachari
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 Indian independence ...
(Rajaji). This move was immediately opposed by
E. V. Ramasamy
Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy (17 September 187924 December 1973), commonly known as Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician. He was the organizer of the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam and is considered the architect of ...
(Periyar) and the opposition
Justice Party (later
Dravidar Kazhagam
Dravidar Kazhagam is a social movement founded by E. V. Ramasamy, 'Periyar' E. V. Ramasamy. Its original goals were to eradicate the ills of the existing caste and class system including untouchability and on a grander scale to obtain a "Dra ...
). The agitation, which lasted for about 30 months, was multifaceted and involved
fasts
Fasting is the act of refraining from eating, and sometimes drinking. However, from a purely physiological context, "fasting" may refer to the metabolic status of a person who has not eaten overnight (before "breakfast"), or to the metabolic state ...
, 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
The Lordship of Parliament of Erskine (Lord Erskine) was created around 1426 for Sir Robert Erskine. The sixth lord was created Earl of Mar in 1565, with which title (and the earldom of Kellie) the lordship then merged.
Lords Erskine (c. 1426)
* ...
in February 1940 after the resignation of the Congress government in 1939.
Background
The Republic of India has hundreds of languages. According to the Census of 2001, there are 1,635 rationalized mother tongues and 122 languages with more than 10,000 speakers.
During the
British Raj
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
, English was the
official language
An official language is defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as, "the language or one of the languages that is accepted by a country's government, is taught in schools, used in the courts of law, etc." Depending on the decree, establishmen ...
. When the Indian Independence Movement gained momentum in the early part of the 20th century, efforts were undertaken to make
Hindustani
Hindustani may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Hindustan (another name of India)
* Hindustani language, an Indo-Aryan language, with Hindi and Urdu being its two standard registers
* Hindustani Muslims are the Urdu-speaking, Hindust ...
as a common language to unite various linguistic groups against the British Government. As early as 1918,
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 ...
established the ''Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha'' (Institution for the Propagation of Hindi in South India). In 1925, the Indian National Congress switched to Hindustani from English for conducting its proceedings.
Both Gandhi and
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...
were supporters of Hindustani and Congress wanted to propagate the learning of Hindustani in non-Hindi speaking Provinces of India.
The idea of making Hindustani or Hindi the common language was not acceptable to Periyar, who viewed it as an attempt to make Tamils subordinate to
North India
North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...
ns.
The Indian National Congress won the
1937 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 1937.
Asia
* 1937 Philippine local elections
* 1937 Iranian legislative election
* 1937 Soviet Union legislative election
India
* 1937 Indian provincial elections
* 1937 Madras Presidency legislative a ...
in Madras Province. Rajaji became the Chief Minister on 14 July 1937. He was a supporter of propagating Hindi in South India. Even before the elections, he had expressed support for Hindi in a newspaper article (''Sudesamithran'', 6 May 1937): "Government employment is limited. All cannot get it. Therefore one has to search for other jobs. For that and for business, knowledge of Hindi is necessary. Only if we learn Hindi, the south Indian can gain respect among the others."
On 11 August 1937,
within a month of coming to power, he announced his intention to introduce Hindi language teaching in secondary schools by issuing a policy statement.
This move followed lobbying by pro-Hindi organisations like ''Hindustani Seva Dal'' and ''Hindustani Hitashi Sabha''. These organisations had earlier convinced many
Justice Party led local governments to introduce compulsory Hindi in schools in the early 1930s.
Periyar and the opposition Justice Party led by
A. T. Panneerselvam
Rao Bahadur Sir Annasamy Thamaraiselvam Pannirselvam (1 June 1888 – 1 March 1940) was an Indian attorney, landlord, politician and leader of the Justice Party.
Early life
Pannirselvam was born on 1 June 1888 into a Udayar community famil ...
immediately opposed the move. An Anti-Hindi conference was organised on 4 October 1937 to protest the announcement. On 21 April 1938, Rajaji went ahead and passed a government order (G.O) making the teaching of Hindi compulsory in 125 Secondary schools in the Province. Rajaji's persistence was viewed by Hindi's opponents as an attempt to destroy Tamil and promote Hindi. They started statewide protests against Rajaji and Hindi. The agitation was marked by protest marches, anti-Hindi conferences, observing an anti-Hindi day (1 July
and 3 December 1938
), fasts against government policies, black flag demonstrations and picketing of government offices and institutions. It was active in Tamil speaking districts of the Province -
Ramnad
Ramanathapuram (), also known as Ramnad, is a city Municipal Corporation in Ramanathapuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Ramanathapuram district and the second largest town (by population) ...
,
Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli (), also known as Nellai and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirunelveli District. It is the fourth-largest munici ...
,
Salem
Salem may refer to:
Places
Canada
* Salem, Ontario, various places
Germany
* Salem, Baden-Württemberg, a municipality in the Bodensee district
** Salem Abbey (Reichskloster Salem), a monastery
* Salem, Schleswig-Holstein
Israel
* Salem (B ...
,
Tanjore
Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore,#Pletcher, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian c ...
and
North Arcot
North Arcot was a former district in Madras Presidency, acquired by the annexation of the Arcot State in 1855 when its Nawab died without issue. It had Chittoor as its headquarters (currently in Andhra pradesh). On 1 April 1911, the Chittoor d ...
.
The agitation lasted till the order was withdrawn in February 1940. Two persons -Natarajan and Thalamuthu- lost their lives. Around 1,200 people including Periyar were imprisoned.
Support for the agitation

The anti-Hindi agitation was backed by Periyar's
Self-Respect Movement
The Self-Respect Movement is a popular human rights movement originating in South India aimed at achieving social equality for those oppressed by the Indian caste system, advocating for lower castes to develop self-respect. It was founded in ...
and Justice Party. The Justice party was led by older, established leaders like
Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu
Rao Bahadur Sir Kurma Venkatareddi Naidu KCSI (1875–1942), also known as K. V. Reddi Naidu, was an Indian politician, lawyer, diplomat, and academic. He served as the Premier of Madras Presidency and was one of only two Indians to hold the p ...
and Pannirselvam, who did not have reputations as agitators and derived their power from patronage. Their representatives in the
Madras Legislature demanded that the Hindi teaching be made optional.
The more militant agitators led by Periyar did not have any patronage, but derived their influence from activism and politics of agitation. Periyar eventually became the president of the Justice Party during the course of the agitation. The agitation was also supported by Tamil scholars like
Maraimalai Adigal
Maraimalai Adigal (15 July 1876 – 15 September 1950) was a Tamil Saivite writer, orator and father of the Tanittamil Iyakkam movement. He authored more than 100 books, including works on original poems and dramas and notable research works o ...
, Somasundara Bharathi, K. Appadurai, Mudiyarasan,
K. A. P. Viswanatham and
Ilakkuvanar. In December 1937, Tamil Saivite scholars were among the first to announce their opposition to the Hindi teaching in the ''Saiva Sidhandha Maha Samaja'' conference at
Velur.
Women also participated in the agitation in large numbers.
Moovalur Ramamirtham
Moovalur Ramamirtham (1883–1962) was a Tamil social reformer, author, and political activist of the Dravidian Movement, who worked for the abolition of the ''Devadasi'' system in the Madras Presidency.
Early life
Ramamirtham was born in 188 ...
, Narayani, Va. Ba. Thamaraikani, Munnagar Azhagiyar, Dr.
S. Dharmambal, Malar Mugathammaiyar, Pattammal and Seethammal were some of the women who were arrested for participating in the agitation.
On 13 November 1938,
the Tamil Nadu Women's Conference was convened to demonstrate women's support for the movement.
Despite the anti-Brahmin sentiments of the backers of the agitation, a few Brahmins like Kanchi Rajagopalachari also participated in the movement.
The Tamil speaking Muslims in Madras Province supported the agitation (in contrast to the
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
speaking Muslims, who supported the propagation of Hindi).
P. Khalifulla Sahib, a
Muslim League Muslim League may refer to:
Political parties British India
*All-India Muslim League, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan
** Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organization above
**Unionist Muslim L ...
member representing
Trichy
Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...
in the Legislative Assembly, declared "I may at once say that I am a
Rowther
The Rowther (anglicised as ''Irauttar'', ''Rawther, Ravuttar,'' ''Ravutta'', ''Ravuthar, Ravuthamar'') are a distinct Muslim community living largely in the south Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. While some of them are partially descende ...
myself; my mother tongue is Tamil and not Urdu. I am not ashamed of it; I am proud of it.. We have not been told why Hindi after all has been chosen as the common language of India".
Financial support for the agitation was provided by industrialists and landlords like
W. P. A. Soundarapandian Nadar
Woothampatti Punnaivana Ayya Soundarapandian (15 September 1893 – 22 February 1953) was a leading figure in Nadar Mahajana Sangam who became the first Nadar (caste), Nadar member of the Madras Legislative Council upon a recommendation by P ...
and
G. D. Naidu.
Acknowledging the agitation's popular support, Lord Erskine, the then Governor of Madras wrote to Viceroy
Linlithgow
Linlithgow ( ; ; ) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland. It was historically West Lothian's county town, reflected in the county's historical name of Linlithgowshire. An ancient town, it lies in the Central Belt on a historic route between Edi ...
in July 1938 that "Compulsory Hindi has been the cause of great trouble in this province and is certainly contrary to the wishes of the bulk of the population..."
Fasts
On 1 May 1938, a young man named Stalin Jagadeesan went on a fast demanding the withdrawal of compulsory Hindi teaching. He became a symbol for the anti-Hindi agitators. In an interview published in Periyar's magazine ''Viduthalai'' he declared that his fast was to prove that ''Tamil Thai'' (lit. Mother Tamil) still had loyal sons. On 1 June, another man named Ponnusamy began a fast in front of Rajaji's house. Periyar did not approve of fasting as a form of protest. But other leaders of the agitation like
C. N. Annadurai
Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai (15 September 19093 February 1969), also known as Perarignar, was an Indian politician who was the founder and first general-secretary of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). He served as the fourth and last chi ...
used Jagadeesan as an example. Annadurai declared in an anti-Hindi meeting that "If Jagadeesan dies, I am ready to take his place, and die along with ten others. As soon as Jagadeesan dies, you should also be prepared to die". Jagadeesan's fast was called off after ten weeks.
Picketing and processions
A major feature of the agitation was the picketing of government offices and the schools where Hindi was being taught compulsorily. A boycott committee was formed on 1 June 1938 to coordinate the picketing. Rajaji's house in
Mambalam
West Mambalam is a residential and commercial area in Chennai, India. It is known for its shops, bazaars and Hindu temples. It is bounded by Kodambakkam to the north and Saidapet to the south. T. Nagar and Nandanam stretch along its entire eas ...
, the Board High School at
Tiruvarur
Thiruvarur () also spelt as Tiruvarur is a municipality in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Thiruvarur district and Thiruvarur taluk. The temple chariot of the Thyagaraja temple, weighing and measuring ...
and the
Hindu Theosophical School at
Triplicane
Thiruvallikeni known as Triplicane, is one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Chennai, India. It is situated on the Bay of Bengal coast and about from Fort St George. The average elevation of the neighbourhood is 14 metres above Mean sea leve ...
,
Madras
Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
became popular targets for the picketers. In that month Periyar started playing an active role in the agitation and the movement heated up. In November an anti-Hindi procession in Madras city turned violent and developed into a riot with protesters stoning the offices of ''
Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language India, Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the Indian Express Limited, ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnat ...
'', ''
Ananda Vikatan
''Ananda Vikatan'' is a Tamil-language weekly magazine published from Chennai, India.
History
''Ananda Vikatan'' was started by Late Pudhoor Vaidyanadhaiyar in February 1926 as a monthly publication. The issue for December 1927 was not publishe ...
'', ''
Dina Mani
''Dinamani'' is a Tamil daily newspaper. The newspaper was established in 1933 and is owned by The New Indian Express Group. The first edition was published on 11 September. The printed circulation was 12,44,568 as on Aug 2022 and 11,52,546 onl ...
'' and ''Tamil Mani''. With Periyar's fiery speeches motivating them, the agitators gained response from the Police. The agitation which started relatively small, began to gain momentum.
Tamil brigade
In August–September 1938, a protest march was jointly organised by the Self-Respect movement and the Muslim league. It was flagged of by Periyar and Khaliffullah. The marchers who called themselves ''Tamilar Padai'' (lit. Tamil brigade), started from
Trichy
Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...
on 1 August 1938. They were led by
Pattukkottai Alagiri, Kumarasamy Pillai and Moovalur Ramamirtham. In the next 42 days, the marchers covered 234 villages and 60 towns. They addressed 87 public meetings and received widespread coverage in the press. They reached Madras on 11 September 1938 and were arrested for picketing government offices. The march succeeded in raising anti-Hindi and pro-Tamil support in smaller towns and villages they covered.
Natarajan and Thalamuthu
Two persons died during the agitation and were claimed as martyrs by the agitators. Their deaths fueled the protests further. L. Natarajan was arrested On 5 December 1938. He was admitted to the hospital on 30 December and died on 15 January 1939. On 13 February 1939, Thalamuthu was arrested with others for picketing the Hindu Theological High School in Madras. While imprisoned, he fell ill on 6 March and died on 11 March. The government claimed that his death was due to
Cellulitis
Cellulitis is usually a bacterial infection involving the inner layers of the skin. It specifically affects the dermis and subcutaneous fat. Signs and symptoms include an area of redness which increases in size over a few days. The borders of ...
and
Amoebic dysentery
Amoebiasis, or amoebic dysentery, is an infection of the intestines caused by a parasitic amoeba '' Entamoeba histolytica''. Amoebiasis can be present with no, mild, or severe symptoms. Symptoms may include lethargy, loss of weight, coloni ...
and he was already in poor health when he died.
When the issue was raised in the Assembly, Rajaji dismissed it casually. The agitators were incensed by the government attitude and turned the dead men into martyrs. Their funeral processions in Madras were attended by hundreds of mourners and witnessed fiery speeches denouncing the government. Annadurai proclaimed that Natarajan's name and deeds should be inscribed in gold in the history of the world. The agitators praised their sacrifices and claimed that the dead men had refused early release in exchange for ending their activities. In an interview given to the ''Sunday Observer'' on 27 January 1939, Natarajan's father K. Lakshmanan said when his son was hospitalized he refused to apologize to get an early release.
Anti Brahminism
The anti-Hindi movement viewed the Hindi legislation as an attempt by
Brahmins
Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
to impose Hindi and
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
over Tamil.
Rajaji's earlier attempt to translate an English Language Physics book into Tamil using Sanskrit words was viewed as proof of his preference of Sanskrit over Tamil. The anti-Hindi movement portrayed the Brahmin-dominated Tamil Nadu Congress party as a stooge of "Hindi Imperialists" from the North. The resistance of the Brahmin Tamil scholars for removing Sanskrit words from Tamil was viewed by some in the agitation as proof of Brahmin complicity in the attempt to destroy Tamil.
Rajaji was identified as an enemy of Tamil. Dravidian movement newspapers carried cartoons depicting Rajaji hurling a dagger at ''Tamil Thai'' and disrobing her. Similar banners were displayed in the processions taken out by anti-Hindi agitators. In an anti-Hindi meeting organised in August 1938, Pavalar Balasundaram accused the Brahmin community of "killing Tamil Thai". Rajaji's dismissal of Natarajan's death in the Assembly was denounced as "Aryans laughing while Tamils shed tears for their hero". Rajaji complained that the agitators were describing their opponents "by caste, by their sacred thread, by the tuft of the hair on their head".
Periyar, who had been arrested in November 1938, sent an address from jail which was read out in a rally organised on 29 December 1938. In it he called the Brahmins 'mosquitos', 'bugs' and 'Jews', and said that the abolition of the reign of priests was more urgent than the abolition of
zamindari
A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous Indian feudalism, feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian language, Persian was the offi ...
.
Kumararajah Muthiah Chettiar, the leader of the opposition, claimed at the rally that Periyar's arrest had "awakened the masses"; Panneerselvam called Brahmins interlopers in the Tamil land, separating them from Tamils. ''
The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
'' referred to "a hymn of hate" in their report of the rally.
Government response
The ruling Congress Party was divided on the Hindi issue. While Rajaji and his supporters stuck to their position,
Sathyamurti and
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (; 5 September 188817 April 1975; natively Radhakrishna) was an Indian academician, philosopher and statesman who served as the President of India from 1962 to 1967. He previously served as the vice president of ...
were against it. They wanted Rajaji to make Hindi optional or to provide a conscience clause for allowing parents to withhold their children from Hindi Classes. Satyamurti also disagreed with the use of Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1932 against the anti-Hindi agitators.
In a letter written to
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 ...
on 7 July 1938, he wrote:
I personally believe that where a parent or guardian swears an affidavit before a magistrate stating his reasons that it is against his conscience that his boy or girl should learn Hindustani compulsorily, the child may be exempted. I personally believe very few parents or guardians will claim this exemption. This will expose the hollowness of the agitation and kill it. I wish you to write to Sri. C. Rajagopalachari suggesting this to him. Moreover, I am not very happy over the use by the Madras Government of the Criminal Law Amendment Act against these picketers.
Rajaji defended his action in another G.O. issued on 14 June 1938:
The attainment by our Province of its rightful place in the national life of India requires that our educated youth should possess a working knowledge of the most widely spoken language in India. Government have therefore decided upon the introduction of Hindustani in the secondary school curriculum of our province. Government desire to make it clear that Hindi is not to be introduced in any elementary school whatsoever, the mother tongue being the only language taught in such schools. Hindi is to be introduced only in secondary schools and there too only in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd forms, that is to say in the 6th, 7th and 8th years of school life. It will not therefore interfere in any way with the teaching of the mother tongue in the secondary schools....Hindi will be compulsory only in the sense that attendance in such classes will be compulsory and pupils cannot take Hindi as a substitute for Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam or Kannada, but must learn Hindi only in addition to one of these languages.
He refused to give in to the demands of the agitators. He claimed they were motivated by their "prejudices of anti-aryanism" and "hatred of the Congress".
The police response to the agitation grew progressively brutal in 1939. Rajaji used the Criminal Law Amendment Act against the agitators, so that they could be charged of "non-bailable" criminal offenses.
Displeased by his high handedness, Governor Erskine complained: "..
ajajiwas too much of a
Tory
A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...
for me, for though I may want to go back twenty years, he wishes to go back two thousand and to run India as it was run in the time of
King Ashoka
Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka ( ; , ; – 232 BCE), and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was Emperor of Magadha from until his death in 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynasty. His empire covered a large pa ...
". During the agitation, a total of 1,198 protesters were arrested and out of them 1,179 were convicted (73 of those jailed were women and some of them went to jail with their children; 32 children accompanied their mothers to prison).
Periyar was fined 1,000 Rupees and sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment for inciting "women to disobey the law" (he was released within six months on 22 May 1939 citing medical grounds)
and Annadurai was jailed for four months.
On 7 June 1939, all those arrested for participating in the agitations were released without explanation.
Rajaji also organised pro-Hindustani meetings to counter the agitators.
Cancellation
On 29 October 1939, Rajaji's Congress Government resigned protesting the involvement of India in the Second World War. Madras provincial government was placed under Governor's rule. On 31 October, Periyar suspended the agitation and asked the Governor to withdraw the compulsory Hindi order.
On 21 February 1940, Governor Erskine, issued a press communique withdrawing compulsory Hindi teaching and making it optional.
Impact
The anti-Hindi agitations of 1937-40 led to a change of guard in the Madras Province. The main opposition party to the Indian National Congress in the state, the Justice Party, came under Periyar's leadership on 29 December 1938.
In 1944, the Justice Party was renamed as Dravidar Kazhagam. The political careers of many later leaders of the
Dravidian Movement
Dravidian politics is the main political ideology in Tamil Nadu that seeks to safeguard the rights of the Dravidian peoples.
Dravidian politics started in British India with the formation of the Justice Party on 20 November 1916 in Victoria ...
, such as C. N. Annadurai, started with their participation in these agitations. The agitations stopped the compulsory teaching of Hindi in the state.
The agitations also reshaped the Dravidian Movement and broadened its political base, when it shifted from its earlier pro-Tamil stance to a more inclusive one, which was both anti-Hindi and pro-English.
In the words of Sumathi Ramaswamy (Professor of History at
Duke University
Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...
),
he anti-Hindi agitations knit
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads
* He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English
* He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana)
* Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter call ...
together diverse, even incompatible, social and political interests... Their common cause against Hindi had thrown together religious revivalists like Maraimalai Atikal (1876-1950) with avowed atheists like Ramasami and Bharathidasan
Bharathidasan Birth name: K. Subburathinam, the person's given name: Subburathinam, father's given name: Kanagasabai. (K. Subburathinam by the prevalent patronymic initials as prefix naming system in Tamil Nadu and it is Subburathinam Kanag ...
(1891-1964); men who supported the Indian cause like T.V. Kalyanasundaram (1883-1953) and M. P. Sivagnanam with dravidian movement supporters like Annadurai; university professors like Somasundara Bharati (1879-1959) and M.S. Purnalingam Pillai (1866 -1947) with uneducated street poets, populist pamphleteers and college students.
See also
*
Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu
The anti-Hindi agitations in Tamil Nadu have been ongoing intermittently in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu (formerly Madras State and part of Madras Presidency) since the early 20th century. The agitations involve several mass protes ...
*
Dravidian parties
Dravidian parties include an array of List of political parties in India, regional political parties in the States and union territories of India, state of Tamil Nadu, India, which trace their origins and ideologies either directly or indirect ...
*
Rise of Dravidian parties to power in Tamil Nadu
Dravidian parties rose to power and prominence in the political stage of Tamil Nadu, a state in India, in the 1960s. The rise in power and political support was gradual until Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), a Dravidian party, formed the governm ...
References
External links
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