In this series, we take a trip down memory lane, back to the Madras of the 1900s, as we unravel tales and secrets of the city through its most iconic personalities and episodes.
Triumph of Labour statue by Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury and (inset) M Singaravelu Chettiar
Chennai:
In Madras, the first Indian Labour Day was celebrated in 1923. Because of its early industrialisation, Madras was a hot bed for labour movements—starting with theosophists like Annie Besant and Wadia to Tamil scholars like Thiru vi ka—all had their role to play in organising the workers and inducing strikes. The Buckingham and Carnatic mills and its frequent strikes gave rise to an active labour movement in the city
The first Labour Day was organised by M Singaravelu Chettiar. There were two separate functions and both on the beaches. One of these was organised at Triplicane Beach and the other one was arranged at the beach opposite Madras High Court, although there is no beach now opposite the high court because the expansion of the Madras port has eaten it up.
Singaravelu should have been the last person to take up the proletarian problems. He came from a reasonably wealthy family and had an urban upbringing. He had studied law and had a good practice. He was dabbling in labour politics of Madras When Gandhi named him one of the two leaders of the non-cooperation movement in madras to protest the prince of wales movement. An emotionally charged Singaravelu burnt his lawyer coat in the high court announce his renouncing of a prosperous career in law for the sake of national issues
But, differences soon cropped up within the Congress. While Gandhi wanted the hartal against the prince to be voluntary over enthusiastic followers from the mills owing allegiance to Singaravelu threatened and forced the shops to be closed. But the forced closure of shops irked Gandhi who in an article in Young India criticised Singaravelu for not imbibing the true spirit of the non-cooperation movement.
In an angry letter, Gandhi said that the Madras hartal showed we are not yet ready for self-government. A week later Chauri Chaura incident happened and Gandhi withdrew the Disobedience movement.
A disillusioned Singaravelu broke ranks with Congress and went back to championing the cause of workers. He continued speaking in the public meetings and demonstrations and writing articles in support of labour. On May 1, 1923, when he raised the red flag for the first time in the country’s history, he also founded his own party—The Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan.
Singaravelu said unlike other parties in India, it would neither be an opportunist party nor one that aimed at reform a Labour-Kisan Party of Hindustan would be a forum for ‘politico-economic policy for labour” the formation of the party however had a hostile reception from the then established labour leaders. He was accused of planting bizarre ideas within the labour movement. It was thought it would be distractive and disruptive to existing labour movements and wanted it to be ‘nipped in the bud.’ They believed only All India Trade Union Congress had the right to represent the workers of India. The other leaders held a mass meeting of madras workers as a challenge to the nascent Labour-Kisan party.
The party waned in two years, but it was not because of the Indian challenge. Singaravelu’s successful boycott of the Prince of Wales’ visit was not forgotten by the British government. The royal visit had becoming an embarrassing farce with the prince meeting only school students and pensioners.
Singaraveluwas arrested in March 1924 on charges of conspiring to wage war against the Crown as a participant in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case, but proceedings against him were dropped because of his prolonged illness. Singaravelu later aided the setting up of the Communist Party of India in 1925.
In his later years he joined hands with EVR Naicker and chalked out a new socio-political known as the Erode Path. Though Singaravelu took active interest at one-point EVR decided confronting the British government was no good for his nascent self-respect movement and dropped the erode path.
Though only a few remember Singaravelu now , the country has continued to celebrate May Day as a means to honour the effort put in by workers. the approximate location of the Triplicane may day has the Triumph of Labour statue by Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury, and was erected on 25 January 1959
The writer is a historian and author
*References: Dilip Veeraraghavan’s book The Making of the Madras Working Class
Labour Day—now more popularly known as May Day—began on May 1, 1886, when workers took to the streets across the US to reduce the workday to eight-hour shifts. It was a messy event with bombs thrown at the police, protestors shot, and arrested people hanged. The May Day is a highly celebrated and popular event across the world especially when the Soviet Bloc was fully communist.
In Madras, the first Indian Labour Day was celebrated in 1923. Because of its early industrialisation, Madras was a hot bed for labour movements—starting with theosophists like Annie Besant and Wadia to Tamil scholars like Thiru vi ka—all had their role to play in organising the workers and inducing strikes. The Buckingham and Carnatic mills and its frequent strikes gave rise to an active labour movement in the city
The first Labour Day was organised by M Singaravelu Chettiar. There were two separate functions and both on the beaches. One of these was organised at Triplicane Beach and the other one was arranged at the beach opposite Madras High Court, although there is no beach now opposite the high court because the expansion of the Madras port has eaten it up.
Singaravelu should have been the last person to take up the proletarian problems. He came from a reasonably wealthy family and had an urban upbringing. He had studied law and had a good practice. He was dabbling in labour politics of Madras When Gandhi named him one of the two leaders of the non-cooperation movement in madras to protest the prince of wales movement. An emotionally charged Singaravelu burnt his lawyer coat in the high court announce his renouncing of a prosperous career in law for the sake of national issues
But, differences soon cropped up within the Congress. While Gandhi wanted the hartal against the prince to be voluntary over enthusiastic followers from the mills owing allegiance to Singaravelu threatened and forced the shops to be closed. But the forced closure of shops irked Gandhi who in an article in Young India criticised Singaravelu for not imbibing the true spirit of the non-cooperation movement.
In an angry letter, Gandhi said that the Madras hartal showed we are not yet ready for self-government. A week later Chauri Chaura incident happened and Gandhi withdrew the Disobedience movement.
A disillusioned Singaravelu broke ranks with Congress and went back to championing the cause of workers. He continued speaking in the public meetings and demonstrations and writing articles in support of labour. On May 1, 1923, when he raised the red flag for the first time in the country’s history, he also founded his own party—The Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan.
Singaravelu said unlike other parties in India, it would neither be an opportunist party nor one that aimed at reform a Labour-Kisan Party of Hindustan would be a forum for ‘politico-economic policy for labour” the formation of the party however had a hostile reception from the then established labour leaders. He was accused of planting bizarre ideas within the labour movement. It was thought it would be distractive and disruptive to existing labour movements and wanted it to be ‘nipped in the bud.’ They believed only All India Trade Union Congress had the right to represent the workers of India. The other leaders held a mass meeting of madras workers as a challenge to the nascent Labour-Kisan party.
The party waned in two years, but it was not because of the Indian challenge. Singaravelu’s successful boycott of the Prince of Wales’ visit was not forgotten by the British government. The royal visit had becoming an embarrassing farce with the prince meeting only school students and pensioners.
Singaraveluwas arrested in March 1924 on charges of conspiring to wage war against the Crown as a participant in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case, but proceedings against him were dropped because of his prolonged illness. Singaravelu later aided the setting up of the Communist Party of India in 1925.
In his later years he joined hands with EVR Naicker and chalked out a new socio-political known as the Erode Path. Though Singaravelu took active interest at one-point EVR decided confronting the British government was no good for his nascent self-respect movement and dropped the erode path.
Though only a few remember Singaravelu now , the country has continued to celebrate May Day as a means to honour the effort put in by workers. the approximate location of the Triplicane may day has the Triumph of Labour statue by Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury, and was erected on 25 January 1959
The writer is a historian and author
*References: Dilip Veeraraghavan’s book The Making of the Madras Working Class