Rajaji — Some Vignettes

Summary

This is a two-page Swarajya article published on 6 December 1975 to mark Rajaji’s birthday (8 December), presenting extracts from Musti Venkatesa Iyengar’s book on C. Rajagopalachari. The extracts sketch Rajaji as a multi-splendoured personality: the first and only Indian Governor-General of pre-Independence India, a statesman whose greatness rested on intellect, devotion to great causes, and personal sacrifice. Under the heading “Calm and Quiet”, the author recounts an anecdote from 1921 in which C. F. Andrews, then a professor at Shantiniketan, introduced him to Rajaji at the height of the Hindu-Muslim unity effort during the Khilafat conference in Delhi, and remarked afterwards that Rajaji was “the man who understands Bapu more than any one else in India.”

A short section on Rajaji’s premiership of Madras recalls his ordering the removal of a statue of Neil (a former British Governor) from a public square, whose reinstallation in a museum was quietly accepted by the Government of England — offered as an early instance of his willingness to correct historical injuries without theatrics. A tribute to Sardar Patel begins to unveil Rajaji’s portrait of him but is cut off (“Continued on page 6”).

Page 6 develops two further vignettes. Under “Resourcefulness and Keenness of Intellect”, Dr Rajendra Prasad’s tribute is quoted, praising Rajaji’s clay-like resourcefulness, his teaching drawn from Mahatmaji’s example, and the great courage of conviction with which he took the political decisions that cost his popularity. Under “Integrity and Self-Sacrifice”, Pandit Nehru’s tribute records twenty-eight years of close association across many crises, occasional political separation, and repeated coming-together — culminating in the assessment that Rajaji embodies keen intellect, the highest integrity, and self-sacrifice, and is thus “an invaluable asset to a nation.” The chunk also includes a full-page political cartoon captioned “Just Think of It!” (five panels touching on Congress leadership in Tamil Nadu, Free Bangladesh, Spain’s “rule by force”, Amin and Russia, and Menon Ministers vs. Kerala Congress) and a portrait sketch of Rajaji signed “Vinu”.

Key points

• Swarajya publishes birthday-tribute extracts from Musti Venkatesa Iyengar’s book on Rajaji, timed to 8 December 1975 and dated 6 December 1975.
• Frames Rajaji as India’s first and only pre-Independence Indian Governor-General, whose greatness stemmed from intellect, devotion to great causes, and sacrifice.
• Uses a 1921 Shantiniketan-linked anecdote in which C. F. Andrews’s professor identifies Rajaji as the man who understands Gandhi more than anyone else in India.
• Recounts Rajaji as Premier of Madras ordering the removal of a British-era statue of Neil from a public square, with the Government of England eventually accepting its transfer to a museum.
• Quotes Rajendra Prasad’s tribute to Rajaji’s resourcefulness, his fidelity to Mahatmaji’s teaching, and his willingness to accept unpopularity for conviction-driven political decisions.
• Quotes Jawaharlal Nehru’s tribute stressing twenty-eight years of close association across crises and political disagreements, and calling Rajaji’s integrity and self-sacrifice “an invaluable asset to a nation.”
• A stand-alone editorial cartoon page “Just Think of It!” places India’s Congress politics of the day alongside Bangladesh, Franco’s Spain, Amin’s Russia, and Kerala’s Menon-Congress equation.
• The chunk closes with a Vinu portrait of an elderly Rajaji, illustrating the elder-statesman iconography the article is building.