Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar

Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar Biography

Diwan Bahadur Sir Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar was an Indian lawyer, diplomat and statesman who hailed from Kurnool, Madras Presidency in British India. He lived during the period, 14 October 1887 – 17 July 1976. He was a powerful administrator from south India known for his administrative powers and bureaucratic posts in pre-independence and independent India. In 1970, government of India honoured him with Padmabhushan for his overall contributions towards the field of civil service.

Mudaliar was born on 14 October 1887 in the town of Kurnool. His birth town now belongs to Andhra Pradesh. He was born into a Tamil-speaking Thuluva Vellalar family in Kurnool during British reign in India. Diwan Bahadur Sir Arcot Lakshmanaswami Mudaliar, known as an educationist and physician is his twin brother. He was a recipient of Padma Bhushan in 1954 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1963. Ramasamy Mudaliar completed his graduation from Madras Christian College and continued with law studies, before started his practice. He was a part of the Justice Party ever since its inception in 1917 and served as its general secretary. He had travelled to foreign countries in the role of a diplomat.

He regarded as the "brain of the Justice Party", and slowly rose to prominence.  He was a prominent orator, known for his inspiring speeches. He also stood forward in organizing non-Brahmin conferences across India. In 1926, he along with his party tasted failure in Madras Legislative Council elections and Mudaliar took a temporary retirement from politics. He also served as the editor of Justice, the mouthpiece of the Justice Party, he was associated with. Mudaliar was appointed member of the Viceroy's Executive Council in 1939 and he was knighted again as a KCSI in 1942. Towards the later years, he served as the Diwan of Mysore and many more decorative posts.

Published: September 17, 2018

Updated: September 17, 2018