C. Rajagopalachari

Indian Independence Movement[edit]

Rajagopalachari's interest in public affairs and politics began when he commenced his legal practice in Salem in 1900.^[23] At the age of 28, he joined the Indian National Congress and participated as a delegate in the 1906 Calcutta session.^[13] Inspired by Indian independence activist Bal Gangadhar Tilak,^[20] he later became a member of the Salem municipality in 1911.^[24] In 1917, he was elected chairman of the municipality and served from 1917 to 1919^[20][25] during which time he was responsible for the election of the first Dalit member of the Salem municipality. In 1917, he defended Indian independence activist P. Varadarajulu Naidu against charges of sedition^[26] and two years later participated in the agitations against the Rowlatt Act.^[25][27] Rajagopalachari was a close friend of the founder of Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company V. O. Chidambaram Pillai as well as greatly admired by Indian independence activists Annie Besant, Subramania Bharati and C. Vijayaraghavachariar.


After Mahatma Gandhi joined the Indian independence movement in 1919, Rajagopalachari became one of his followers.^[23][27] He participated in the non-cooperation movement and gave up his law practice.^[25] In 1921, he was elected to the Congress Working Committee and served as the General Secretary of the party^[25] before making his first major breakthrough as a leader during the 1922 Indian National Congress session at Gaya when he strongly opposed collaboration with the colonial administration and participation in the diarchial legislatures established by the Government of India Act 1919.^[28][29] While Gandhi was in prison, Rajagopalachari led the group of "No-Changers", individuals against contesting elections for the Imperial Legislative Council and other provincial legislative councils, in opposition to the "Pro-changers" who advocated council entry.^[30] When the motion was put to the vote, the "No-changers" won by 1,748 to 890 votes resulting in the resignation of important Congress leaders including Pandit Motilal Nehru and C. R. Das, the President of the Indian National Congress.^[31] When the Indian National Congress split in 1923, Rajagopalachari was a member of the Civil Disobedience Enquiry Committee.^[25] He was also involved in the Vaikom Satyagraha movement against untouchability during 1924–25. In a public speech on May 27, 1924, he reassured the anxious upper caste Hindus in Vaikom, "Mahatmaji does not want the caste system abolished but holds that untouchability should be abolished...Mahatmaji does not want you to dine with the Thiyyas or the Pulayas. What he wants is that we must be prepared to go near or touch other human beings as you go near a cow or a horse".^[32]


In the early 1930s, Rajagopalachari emerged as one of the major leaders of the Tamil Nadu Congress. When Gandhi organised the Dandi march in 1930, Rajagopalachari broke the salt laws at Vedaranyam, near Nagapattinam, along with Indian independence activist Sardar Vedaratnam.^[23][25] Rajagopalachari was sentenced to six-months of rigorous imprisonment and was sent to the Trichinopoly Central Prison.^[33] He was subsequently elected President of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee.^[25] Following the enactment of the Government of India Act in 1935, Rajagopalachari was instrumental in getting the Indian National Congress to participate in the 1937 general elections.^[25]