Vaikom Satyagraha

Vaikom Satyagraha
Leaders of Vaikom Satyagraha including T. K. Madhavan (sitting: middle row, last as one views the photograph) K. Kumar (standing last in the row behind TK Madhavan: (bearded) K. P. Kesava Menon (sitting, third) and Amachadi Thevan.
DurationMarch 1924 to November 1925
LocationVaikom Temple, Travancore
TypeNonviolent agitation
MotivePublic access
Organised by
OutcomeNorth, South and West public roads to Vaikom Mahadeva Temple opened. Protestors released.

Vaikom Satyagraha, from 30 March 1924 to 23 November 1925, was a nonviolent agitation for access to the prohibited public environs of the Vaikom Temple in the Kingdom of Travancore. Kingdom of Travancore was known for its rigid and oppressive caste system.[1][2][3][4][5][6] The campaign was conduct and led by Congress, leadersT. K. Madhavan, K. Kelappan, K. P. Kesava Menon. Other notable leaders who participated in the campaign include George Joseph,[7][8] E. V. Ramasamy "Periyar"[9][10] and it was noted for the active support and participation offered by different communities and a variety of activists.[4]

Most of the great temples in the princely state of Travancore had for years forbidden lower castes (untouchables) not just from entering, but also from walking on the surrounding roads.[11][12] The agitation was conceived by the Ezhava Congress leader and a follower of Sri Narayana Guru, T. K. Madhavan. It demanded the right of the Ezhavas and 'untouchables' to use roads around the Vaikom Temple.[5]

Mahatma Gandhi himself visited Vaikom in March 1925.[4] Travancore government eventually constructed new roads near the temple for the use of lower castes. The roads, however, kept the lower castes adequately away from the near environs of the Vaikom Temple and the temple remained closed to the lower castes.[4][5][13][14] After the intervention of Mahatma Gandhi, a compromise was reached with Regent Sethu Lakshmi Bayi who released all those arrested and opened the north, south and west public roads leading to Vaikom Mahadeva Temple to all castes. Bayi refused to open the eastern road. The compromise was criticized by E. V. Ramasamy "Periyar" and some others. Only in 1936, after the Temple Entry Proclamation, was access to the eastern road and entry into the temple allowed to the lower castes.[15][4][5] Vaikom Satyagraha markedly brought the method of nonviolent public protest to Kerala.[5]

  1. ^ "God's own challenge". The Indian Express. 24 December 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  2. ^ N. Vanamamalai; Nā Vān̲amāmalai (1981). Interpretation of Tamil Folk Creations. Dravidian Linguistics Association.
  3. ^ P. Radhakrishnan (2002). India, the Perfidies of Power: A Social Critique. Vedam ebooks. p. 245. ISBN 978-81-7936-003-3. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e Sarkar, Sumit (1989). Modern India: 1885–1947. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 229 and 244. ISBN 9781349197125.
  5. ^ a b c d e Jeffrey, Robin (1992). Politics, Women and Well-Being: How Kerala became 'a Model'. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 108 and 118–19. ISBN 978-1-349-12252-3.
  6. ^ Jeffrey, Robin (1976). "Temple-Entry Movement in Travancore, 1860-1940". Social Scientist. 4 (8): 13–16. doi:10.2307/3516377. JSTOR 3516377.
  7. ^ George, Alphons (2014). "The Role of George Joseph in the Vaikom Satyagraha". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 75. Indian History Congress: 569–574. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44158431. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  8. ^ B.A, Pon Vasanth (30 March 2023). "The contribution of an unsung leader, George Joseph, to the Vaikom Satyagraha". The Hindu. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  9. ^ Chandran, Abhilash (14 March 2023). "Periyar, the unsung hero who breathed life back into Vaikom Satyagraha". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  10. ^ Athiyaman, Pazha. (23 December 2019). "Periyar, the hero of Vaikom". The Hindu. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  11. ^ Jeffrey, Robin (1976). "Temple-Entry Movement in Travancore, 1860-1940". Social Scientist. 4 (8): 14. doi:10.2307/3516377. JSTOR 3516377.
  12. ^ Mathew, George (2018). "God's Own Challenge". The Indian Express.
  13. ^ Menon, Dilip M. (1994). Caste, Nationalism and Communism in South India: Malabar, 1900 - 1948. Cambridge University Press. pp. 81–82.
  14. ^ Sarkar, Sumit (1989). Modern India: 1885–1947. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 229 and 244. ISBN 9781349197125.
  15. ^ Anita Diehl (1977). E. V. Ramaswami Naicker-Periyar: A Study of the Influence of a Personality in Contemporary South India. Esselte studium. p. 24. ISBN 978-91-24-27645-4. Retrieved 27 July 2021.