Remembered in a T’ Nagar road name

Having been interested in the street names of Chennai for long, Thanika­chalam Street in T’ Nagar had long been a mystery to me. It was only recently that I came across a few sources, published and otherwise, that gave details about a personality now little-remembered, after whom the street was named.

O. Thanikachalam Chettiar

The O Narayana Chettiyar family, one of several middle class households of 19th Century Madras, lived in Tondiarpet. Narayana Chettiyar’s second wife, Vedammal, bore him six sons among whom the eldest was Thanikachalam who was born in 1875. Narayana ­Chet­tiyar died when Thanika­chalam was still young and it was left to Vedammal to bring up her brood of six. Her eldest was the bright one and having completed his schooling at the Muthialpet Middle School, he joined the Madras Christian College and graduated in ­Physical Science from there in 1896.

Thanikachalam then joined the Head Post Office where he worked for some time before getting a job as a clerk at Short, Bewes and Company, a European firm of solicitors of many years’ standing in Madras city. His diligence was rewarded and he soon rose to become Manager.

Deciding to put the legal knowledge he was acquiring to good use, he joined the Law College even while continuing with his job and in 1908 qualified as an Attorney at Law. Keeping in mind his experience at Short, Bewes and Company, the Madras High Court waived the minimum number of years required for a person to be enrolled as a lawyer and duly admitted him. From then on O Thanikachalam Chettiyar, or OT Chettiyar as he became better known, made a mark for himself in the courts. It was not long before Short, the senior partner of the firm, began entrusting him with a number of briefs. The firm specialised in cases filed against the Corporation of Madras and Chettiyar acquired deep knowledge about the civic body’s workings. This was to stand him in good stead later in life. After the retirement of Mr. Short, the law firm was renamed Bewes and Thanika­chalam, the new senior partner recognising the talents of the manager who had by then practically become the standing counsel of the firm.

OT Chettiyar was not a man to remain content with his work in the legal profession and he soon became involved in politics. In 1916 (later Sir) Pitti Theyagaroya Chetty, Dr. T.M. Nair and Dr. C. Natesa Mudaliar began a series of Non-Brahmin Conferences in Madras Presidency and this culminated in 1917 in the setting up of the South Indian Welfare Association, with its political wing being called the South Indian Liberal Federation. The latter came to be known as the Justice Party, a name derived from its English language daily, The Justice. The party had as its principal aim the prevention of Brahmin domination in all Government offices and educational institutions. OT Chet­tiyar threw himself wholeheartedly into this movement and in course of time emerged as the right hand man of Sir Pitti Theyagaroya Chetty.

In 1919, OT Chettiyar stood as a candidate for Madras Corporation Council election for Zone 6 and won handsomely. He was to win again in 1922. He became an important member of the Committees that were in charge of taxes and expenditure. In 1925 he became President of the Madras Corporation (equivalent to today’s Mayor) but lost in the Corporation elections.

In the elections for the Madras Legislative Council held in 1920 under the Montagu Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 that saw the setting up of Dyarchy, the Justice Party won a majority; so did OT Chettiyar. Supporting Premier Partha­sarathy Ramarayaningar, the Rajah of Panagal, OT Chettiyar in August 1921 brought forward two proposals to the Legislative Council, both with far-reaching consequences. The first was that all Government posts were to be henceforth filled only by non-Brahmin candidates even if they possessed only the minimum qualifications for the posts. The second was that all posts in the Madras Secretariat (excluding the ICS) were to be filled by non-Brahmins only. Both resolutions were passed with a majority. This was to later fructify as the Communal GO in 1928 which stipulated reservations on caste and religious lines, a forerunner of the contentious reservation policy of the Government of India. OT Chettiyar also sought reforms of the Judiciary. Observing that a majority of district munsiffs were Brahmins, he brought forward a resolution that the Government ought to take over the appointment of munsiffs from the High Court. He later withdrew this proposal when the Government and the Court jointly agreed to look into the matter, setting up an independent committee for this.

In 1921 the Buckingham and Carnatic Mills in Perambur declared a lockout following labour trouble. The lockout persisted for over six months. At the end of three months, one group of workers, identified with a particular community, reported to work and this was opposed by the others. Violence erupted in the Pulianthope area with arson, looting and killing. The police resorted to firing over two days. Sir Pitti, OT Chettiyar and Dr. C. Natesa Mudaliar toured the area without any police escort and formed their own conclusions. Based on this, OT Chettiyar raised the issue in the Legislative Council and in his speech strongly condemned police inaction and also apathy on part of the department in charge of labour matters. Under Dyarchy, these were departments directly under the Governor and a speech criticising them was tantamount to criticism of the Governor himself. This, from a member of the Justice Party which usually toed the British line on most matters, was very daring.

In 1923 the Panagal Government was faced with a no confidence motion brought by Sir Cattamanchi Ramalinga Reddy, an erstwhile Justice Party member who resigned his membership and forming a splinter group aligned with the Swarajists. The motion was debated and OT Chettiyar’s speech outlining the achievements of the Panagal Government turned the tide.

During those busy years OT Chettiyar did not neglect his legal practice. He now had juniors such as WS Krishnaswami Nayudu (who later became a Judge of the High Court), KB Krishna Rao Naidu (later a District Judge) and TR Kothanda­rama Mudaliar. By 1924 he had enrolled himself as an Advocate in the Madras High Court. A couple of years later, the firm of Bewes and Thanikachalam appears to have been dissolved with Bewes becoming Public Prosecutor and OT Chettiyar setting up independent practice. WS Krishnaswami Nayudu in his memoirs (My Memoirs, Justice WS Krishnaswami Nayudu, 1977) recalls that the day would begin at 305 Linghi Chetty Street at 7.30 am with seniors and juniors going through the cases for the day. Most of the cases were on the Original Side and some were at the City Civil Court. At 9.30 am they would disperse, each going home for meals and then reassembling at Court by 10.45 am. OT Chettiyar would keep a watchful but fairly lenient eye on his juniors and encouraged them to prepare briefs independently. He also introduced them to his clients and allowed them to interact independent of his presence. Evenings would be spent at the Marina in the company of the juniors or at the Cosmopolitan Club. OT Chet­tiyar, according to Nayudu, greatly relished his meals. He preferred his breakfast to be ­English in style and when travelling always ate in the European Refreshment Rooms at the stations.

When the Justice Party lost the elections, OT Chettiyar’s participation reduced in government matters. But he continued with other social activities of which there was no dearth.

In 1928, OT Chettiyar shifted home, moving to Waverley House, a bungalow in Egmore. By then he had been diagnosed as being ill with diabetes and was asked to take adequate rest to recuperate his health. Taking up a bungalow on Osborne Road in Bangalore Cantonment, he relaxed for a large part of the summer of 1928.  Though in indifferent health, he participated with enthusiasm in the first Self Respect Movement Conference organised in 1929 by ‘Periyar’ EV Ramaswami Naicker. With the reopening of the Courts following the summer vacation in 1929, OT Chettiyar was appointed Chief Judge of the Small Causes Court. But his health took a turn for the worse and he passed away on July 21, 1929. The road in T’ Nagar was named after him some years later.

Much later, rather ironically, a property on this road was gifted by KB Sundarambal to S. Sathyamurthy, the Congress Party member and freedom fighter, who built his house there. Sathyamurthy and OT Chettiyar had been bitter opponents in the Legislative Council. A few years later there was a move, perhaps supported by Sathyamurthy, to rename the street as the Hindi Prachar Sabha Road. This witnessed enormous protests and the move was dropped. Today the ‘Chettiyar’ has been dropped from the street name and it is now Thanikachalam Street, but the man who gave it the name is largely forgotten. Perhaps the last public function that commemorated him was in 1959 when his portrait was unveiled at a public function in Armenian Street (in the Gokhale Hall?), with C.N. Annadurai presiding.