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| Valangiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri CH PC |
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| Born | 1869 Valangaiman, Madras Presidency, British India |
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| Died | 1946 Madras, India |
| Occupation | lecturer,journalist, entrepreneur |
Rt. Hon'ble Valangiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri CH PC (1869–1946) was an Indian educator, statesman and legislator who founded the Indian Liberal Federation. He is known for his exemplary command of the English language and remarkable oratorial skills.
Srinivasa Sastri was born on September 22, 1869 in the village of Valangaiman, near Kumbakonam, to the Vaidik Sankaranarayana Sastri. Sastri did his schooling at the Native High School, Kumbakonam and graduated from Government College, Kumbakonam. On completion of his graduation, he found employment as a school teacher. For eight years, he served as the headmaster of Hindu High School, Triplicane. During this period, Srinivasa Sastri achieved fame with his immaculate usage of the English language and his good administrative skills. He established the Madras Teachers Guild. He also pioneered the Co-operative Movement by establishing India's first co-operative society, the Triplicane Union Cooperative Society (TUCS)in 1904.
In 1915 he became president of the Servants of India Society. He served as a member of the Madras Legislative Council, the central legislature and the council of state established under Government of India Act 1919. In 1922, along with other moderates who wished to cooperate with the government, he left the Indian National Congress and founded the Indian Liberal Federation, serving as its first president.
During his tenure in the Servants of India Society, he developed a close attachment with Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhiji toften addressed Srinivasa Sastri as his "elder brother" in all their correspondences. When Gandhiji sought Sastri's advice before launching his non-cooperation movement, he stoutly opposed it warning that disregarding law and order would spell disaster to the country's future.
In 1922 and subsequently, he was sent by the Government of India, to the white dominions and Malaya as part of their effort to improve the conditions for Indian emigrants. He also undertook other public tasks through the 1920s and 1930s. During 1930–31, Sastri took part in the Round Table Conference in London.
References
- Indian national movement and the liberals by Abha Saxena, Allahabad, India: Chugh Publications, 1986. foreword by A.C. Banerjee.
- Muldoon, Andrew Robert, “Making a `moderate' India: British conservatives, imperial culture and Indian political reform, 1924—1935”
- "He did the English language proud ", The Hindu, September 26, 2003
- Bipgraphy of Srinivasa Sastri
- "The Freedom of the City of Edinburgh"
