C. Rajagopalachari

News- On February 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the statue of British architect Edwin Lutyens in the central courtyard of Rashtrapati Bhavan will be replaced with a statue of C. Rajagopalachari

Aboout C. Rajagopalachari

• Full Name: Chakravarti Rajagopalachari - though the nation fondly knew him as Rajaji or simply C.R.
• Born: December 1878, in Thorapalli village of the Madras Presidency (present-day Tamil Nadu), into a Tamil Brahmin family.
• Gandhi's 'Conscience Keeper': A close associate of Mahatma Gandhi, who deeply trusted his moral clarity and judgment.
• Early Freedom Fighter: He actively participated in the Rowlatt Satyagraha (1919) and later gave up his flourishing legal career to join the Non-Cooperation Movement (1920).
• Salt Satyagraha in the South: In 1930, while Gandhi marched to Dandi, Rajaji led the parallel Vedaranyam Salt March in South India.
• Premier of Madras (1937-39): After Congress formed governments under the Government of India Act, 1935, Rajaji headed the Madras Presidency.
• The Rajaji Formula (1944): In a bold attempt to prevent further division, he proposed a compromise between Congress and the Muslim League, including a plebiscite in Muslim-majority areas. He directly communicated this proposal to Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
• Only Indian Governor-General (1948-1950): After Independence, he succeeded Lord Mountbatten, becoming the only Indian to hold the post before India became a Republic.
• Union Home Minister (1950-51): Served in the cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru during the early years of independent India.
• Chief Minister of Madras State (1952-54): Continued shaping policy in post-independence India at the state level.
• Temple Entry Reformer: Played a major role in enabling Dalits to enter temples in the Madras Presidency through the Temple Entry legislation (1939).
• Hindi Debate: Though he introduced compulsory Hindi in schools in 1938, he later opposed the imposition of Hindi as India's sole official language during the 1965 language controversy.
• Founder of Swatantra Party (1959): Broke away from Congress ideology to form a party advocating free enterprise, limited government, and opposition to excessive state control.
• Bharat Ratna (1954): Among the first recipients of India's highest civilian honour, recognising his immense contribution to the nation.

Source- IE