P. Rathinavelu Thevar
Encyclopedia
Tiruchirapalli
Tiruchirappalli ) , also called Tiruchi or Trichy , is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli District. It is the fourth largest municipal corporation in Tamil Nadu and also the fourth largest urban agglomeration in the state...
Municipal Chairman, invited Gandhi to lay the foundation for Tiruchi Fort Market expansion works in 1927 and renamed it Gandhi Market, defying the British regime.
He was the first to utilise the Municipal Council to echo its protest against the arrest of Gandhiji in 1930. He prescribed Subramaniya Bharati's patriotic songs as a subject at municipal schools. When Nehru visited Tiruchi in 1936, he stayed at Thevar's house.
Thevar was closely associated with several eminent leaders, including Sathiamoorthy, R. K. Shanmukham Chetty
R. K. Shanmukham Chetty
Sir Ramasamy Chetty Kandasamy Shanmukham Chetty KCIE was an Indian lawyer, economist and politician who served as independent India's first finance minister from 1947 to 1949...
, Rajaji
C. Rajagopalachari
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari , informally called Rajaji or C.R., was an Indian lawyer, independence activist, politician, writer and statesman. Rajagopalachari was the last Governor-General of India...
, Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar
U. Muthuramalingam Thevar
Ukkirapandi MuthuramalingaThevar , also known as Pasumpon Muthuramalingam Thevar, was an Indian politician. He hailed from the Maravar community, the dominant warrior caste group in his home district in southern Tamil Nadu...
and K. Kamaraj
K. Kamaraj
Kumarasami Kamaraj better known as K. Kamaraj was an Indian politician from Tamil Nadu widely acknowledged as the "Kingmaker" in Indian politics during the 1960s. He was the chief minister of Tamil Nadu during 1954-1963 and a Member of Parliament during 1952-1954 and 1969-1975...
.
Thevar participated in various agitations against the British, including the Quit India Movement
Quit India Movement
The Quit India Movement , or the August Movement was a civil disobedience movement launched in India in August 1942 in response to Mohandas Gandhi's call for immediate independence. Gandhi hoped to bring the British government to the negotiating table...
. After Independence, Nehru is said to have offered the post of Ambassador to Uganda to Thevar. But he declined it due to ill health. Thevar served as Chairman of the Tiruchi Municipality for a record five terms from 1924–46 and a member of Legislative Council for many years. Incidentally, the Thevar Hall constructed during his tenure as the Municipal Chairman stands testimony to his affinity to arts and culture.
Realising that the town needed a public hall, the civic body, led by Thevar, constructed the mega hall in 1926 overcoming severe opposition from the local community and named it as Municipal Public Hall. It was a tin roofed structure, with balconies and could house 2,500 people. It was declared open by Raja of Panagal, the then Chief Minister of Government of Madras. It was later named after him.
Stage personalities, including Prithiviraj Kapoor, Raj Kapoor, Kanniah Naidu troupe, Nawab Rajamanikkam troupe, T.K.S. Brothers, M.K. Thiagaraja Bhavathar and P.U. Chinnappa had staged their dramas in this hall. Anna had performed on this stage (`Chandrodayam' drama), so also Sivaji Ganesan (`Yen Vidhi,' etc.), MGR (`Inba Kanavu,' `Advocate Amaran,' `Idintha Kovil,' etc). Mr. Karunanidhi had acted in the play, `Kagithapoo,' on this stage.
For promoting tennis, Thevar founded the City Club in 1927. He formed Tiruchi United Cricket Club to protest against the policy of segregation practiced by the British. It was he who conceived the idea of City vs. districts cricket matches. With the passage of time, his name became synonymous with cricket.