Sri Prakasa

Sri Prakasa (3 August 1890 – 23 June 1971) was an Indian politician, freedom-fighter and administrator. He served as India's first High Commissioner to Pakistan from 1947 to 1949, Governor of Assam from 1949 to 1950, Governor of Madras from 1952 to 1956 and Governor of Bombay from 1956 to 1962.

Sri Prakasa
4th Governor of Bombay
(Maharashtra from 1960)
In office
10 December 1956 – 16 April 1962
Chief MinisterYashwantrao Chavan
Preceded byHarekrushna Mahatab
Succeeded byP. Subbarayan
3rd Governor of Madras State
In office
12 March 1952 – 10 December 1956
Chief MinisterP. S. Kumaraswamy Raja
C. Rajagopalachari
K. Kamaraj
Preceded byKrishna Kumarsinhji Bhavsinhji
Succeeded byA. J. John
2nd Governor of Assam
In office
16 February 1949 – 27 May 1950
Chief MinisterGopinath Bordoloi
Preceded byRonald Francis Lodge (Acting)
Succeeded byJairamdas Daulatram
1st Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan
In office
1947–1949
Prime MinisterJawaharlal Nehru
Preceded byOffice Established
Succeeded bySita Ram
Personal details
Born3 August 1890
Varanasi, United Provinces, British India
Died23 June 1971(1971-06-23) (aged 80)
Alma materUniversity of Cambridge
Sri Prakasa alongside Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Chief Minister Yashwantrao Chavan unveiling a map of the newly established state of Maharashtra at Raj Bhavan, Mumbai on 1 May 1960

Sri Prakasa was born in Varanasi in 1890. In his early days, he participated in the Indian independence movement and was jailed. After India's independence, he served as an administrator and cabinet minister. Sri Prakasa died in 1971 at the age of 80.

Early life

Sri Prakasa was born on 3 August 1890 in Varanasi to Bhagwan Das.[1] He had his schooling at Varanasi and graduated from Cambridge.[1][2]

Indian independence movement

Prakasa was arrested during the Quit India Movement and was in jail from 1942 to 1944.[3]

High Commissioner to Pakistan

In August 1947, Sri Prakasa was appointed India's first High Commissioner to Pakistan and served in the post till 1949. During this time, Pakistan was gripped by communal riots and Sri Prakasa had to deal with the influx of refugees to India and the granting of Indian citizenship to migrants. Sri Prakasa had also to represent India's diplomatic interests during Pakistan's invasion of Kashmir.

Governor of Assam

Sri Prakasa served as the Governor of Assam from 16 February 1949 to 27 May 1949. When Prakasa took over as governor, there were serious disturbances in the eastern parts of the province which were inhabited by the Mizo Hill tribes. The Governor pacified the agitators by promising to grant sufficient autonomy As a result, a Lushai Hills Advisory Council was set up. During his short tenure, he secured the accession of Manipur.[4][5]

Governor of Madras

Sri Prakasa was elected to Lok Sabha from Allahabad in 1952 but was aapointed Governor of Madras soon later. He served as the Governor of Madras from 1952 to 1956. While governor, he took the highly criticized decision to invite politician C. Rajagopalachari to form a Congress government in the state despite the fact that the Indian National Congress did not have a majority and Rajagopalachari was not an elected member of the assembly as he had not participated in the elections.[6][7][8] Rajagopalachari requested Prakasa to nominate him to the assembly thereby foregoing the usual process of election by the members of the assembly. However, Rajagopalachari resigned in two years because of strong opposition to his leadership among party ranks. P.C. Alexander, a former Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra governor, viewed the behaviour of the Governor and the Chief Minister of Madras in 1952 as one of the most serious breaches of the democratic process.[9]

Governor of Bombay

Sri Prakasa served as the Governor of Bombay.

Notes
  1. Siba Pada Sen (1974). Dictionary of national biography. Institute of Historical Studies. pp. 259.
  2. Rajeshwar Dayal (1998). A life of our times. Orient Blackswan. p. 56. ISBN 978-81-250-1546-8.
  3. Y. D. Gundevia (1985). Outside the Archives. University of Nevada. p. 321. ISBN 978-0-86131-723-3.
  4. Sajal Nag (1998). India and North-East India: mind, politics and the process of integration, 1946–1950. Daya Books. p. 110. ISBN 978-81-86030-76-9.
  5. John Parratt. Wounded Land: Politics and Identity in Modern Manipur. Mittal Publications. p. 112. ISBN 978-81-86030-76-9.
  6. "Leader, amend thy mind". Expressindia.com. 8 November 1997. Archived from the original on 24 September 2012.
  7. "Towards a new political culture". The Times Of India. 20 May 2006. Archived from the original on 19 June 2007.
  8. "The Telegraph – Calcutta : Opinion". Telegraphindia.com. 3 March 2005.
  9. "Of Governors and Chief Ministers". C.V. Gopalakrishnan. The Hindu. 31 May 2001. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
Government offices
Preceded by
Ronald Francis Lodge (acting)		 Governor of Assam
16 February 1949 – 27 March 1950		 Succeeded by
Jairam Das Daulatram
Preceded by
M. C. Chagla		 Governor of Bombay
10 December 1956 – 16 April 1962		 Succeeded by
P. Subbarayan
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