S. Srinivasa Iyengar

Srinivasa Iyengar was born on 11 September 1874 to Seshadri Iyengar, a prominent landowner of Ramanathapuram district. His parents were orthodox Sri Vaishnava Brahmins of Madras Presidency. His early schooling was in his mother tongue, Tamil. ==Legal career==

Srinivasa Iyengar commenced practice as lawyer in the Madras High Court in 1898. During this time, the Indian freedom-fighter S. Satyamurthi worked as a junior under Iyengar. Later, he followed Iyengar into the Indian National Congress and the Indian independence movement. Satyamurthi worked under Iyengar while he was the president of the Swarajya Party. He later referred to Iyengar as his "political mentor". This bill was heavily criticised. Iyengar led agitations for the bill. When V. Krishnaswamy Iyer was criticised by extremists after his death, Iyengar defended him. In 1916, he became the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency, the youngest ever to occupy the post. He also served as a member of the Madras Senate from 1912 to 1916. Iyengar also served as the Law member on the executive council of the Governor of Madras from 1916 to 1920. ==Political activities==

Indian independence movement Right from his younger days, Srinivasa Iyengar displayed an interest, though trivial, in politics. He attended the historically significant 1907 session of the Indian National Congress held at Surat which is remembered for the split between the moderates and the extremists. In 1908, V. Krishnaswamy Iyer introduced him to Rash Behari Bose "as the son-in-law of Sir V. Bhashyam Aiyangar and in some ways greater than him". In February 1921, he also returned his C.I.E in protest. Iyengar presided over the 1920 Madras Provincial Conference held at Tinnevely and participated in the Congress sessions held at Ahmedabad(1921), Gaya(1922), Kakinada(1923), Delhi(1923), Belgaum(1924), Kanpur(1925), Gauhati(1926), Madras (1927), Calcutta(1928) and Lahore (1929). His work is believed to have given an unparalleled lead to the Congress in Madras for about ten years. Srinivasa Iyengar presided over the Guwahati session of the Congress in 1926. Iyengar worked hard to deliver a resolution upholding Hindu-Muslim unity, bringing about a temporary political agreement between the political leaders of the two communities. He published Swaraj Constitution, in 1927, outlining a federal scheme of government for future India. Madras Province Swarajya Party When the Congress split in 1923 between the Gandhians and those in support of Council entry, Srinivasa Iyengar was in the non-Gandhian camp and founded the Madras Province Swarajya Party. The Madras Province Swarajya Party contested in the elections to the provincial legislature held between 11 September 1923 and 10 November 1923. Though, as expected, the performance of the Swarajya Party wasn't by any means remarkable, its presence had a major impact on the fortunes of the Justice Party whose majority was considerably reduced compared to the 1920 elections. The dissidents were led by C. R. Reddy, a leader of the Justice Party, who complained of the dictatorial rule of the Raja and his insensitive, unimaginative policies. Backed by Srinivasa Iyengar and the Swarajists, Reddy introduced a no-confidence motion against the government of the Raja of Panagal on 27 November 1923. The Swarajya Party won 44 seats in the 1926 elections and emerged as the single largest party in the house. Comparatively, the Justice Party had won just 20 seats. Because Subbarayan's regime was appointed and largely controlled by the Governor, it became the target of strong criticism both from the Justicites as well as the Swarajists. In March 1927, P. Munuswamy Naidu of the Justice Party passed a motion recommending salary cuts for Government ministers. However, they were defeated by a margin of 41 votes. The Simon Commission was appointed by the British Parliament in 1927 to report on the working of the progress of the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms. Subbarayan opposed the resolution but his cabinet ministers Ranganatha Mudaliar and Arogyaswamy Mudaliar supported it. The Simon Commission visited Madras on 28 February 1928 and was boycotted by the Swarajya Party and the Indian National Congress. However, the Justicites and the Subbarayan Government accorded the commission a warm reception. Motilal Nehru was elected as the convenor of the Constitution Drafting Committee. On 10 August 1928, the committee submitted its report declaring dominion status as the goal of the Congress. Iyengar, however, announced his retirement from active public life early in 1930. == Later life ==

Srinivasa Iyengar briefly returned to politics in 1938 and supported Subhas Chandra Bose as president of the Congress. However, when Bose formed the Forward Bloc, he described it as a "leaky boat." He was also upset with the outbreak of the Second World War. While presiding over a session of the Tyagaraja Bakajana Sabha in 1938, Iyengar spoke: ==Death==

Iyenger made a brief return to political life in 1939, upon the outbreak of World War II and the debate of whether Indians should back the British effort, banking on their goodwill later to deliver independence, or oppose the entry of Indian army into the war without consultation of the Indian people. He died suddenly on 19 May 1941, at his residence in Madras. Iyengar died at his residence in Madras on 19 May 1941. He was 66 years old at the time. == Family ==

Srinivasa Iyengar was married to the third daughter of Sir V. Bhashyam Aiyangar. and a daughter, Ambujammal who was the founder of the Srinivasa Gandhi Nilayam. Parthasarathy studied law and practised as a lawyer before becoming an entrepreneur. He served as the founder and director of the Industrial Development Commission of Madras state and founded the Prithvi Insurance company. In his later life, he became a Hindu monk and adopted the name Swami Anvananda. == Legacy ==

Besides law, Srinivasa Iyengar's other interest were education, social reform, and politics. Among his early influences were Sir Sankaran Nair and C. Vijayaraghavachariar, two former Congress leaders. Thevar was eventually drawn to the Congress and participated in agitations against the British rule. One British CID officer described Srinivasa Iyengar as a "political ideas factory". He was described as frank and generous and having brought a fresh and young look to his political ideas. He was known for making brave and outspoken comments on the Governor or Government officials. A contemporary remarks that Iyengar's opinions were as clear cut as his legal arguments. Srinivasa Iyengar is credited with having popularised the Congress at the village level in South India. He was a staunch believer in the concept of "linked leadership". He was responsible for the induction of K. Kamaraj and Muthuramalinga Thevar in the Indian National Congress. Iyengar's followers and colleagues called him "Lion of the South". == Criticism ==

At the 1920 session of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, E. V. Ramasamy, a leader of the Congress desired to propose a resolution introducing communal representation in education and employment. However, Srinivasa Iyengar who presided over the session refused to permit it reasoning that it would cause unnecessary communal tension. == Works ==