Shyamji Krishna Varma
Encyclopedia
Shyamji Krishna Varma (1857–1930) was an Indian revolutionary
, lawyer and journalist who founded the Indian Home Rule Society
, India House
and The Indian Sociologist
in London
. A graduate of Balliol College, Krishna Varma was a noted scholar in Sanskrit and other Indian languages. He pursued a brief legal career in India and served as the Divan
of a number of Indian princely states in India. He had, however, differences with Crown authority, was dismissed following a supposed conspiracy of local British officials at Junagadh and chose to return to England. An admirer of Dayanand Saraswati's approach of Cultural nationalism
, and of Herbert Spencer
, Krishna Varma believed in Spencer's dictum "Resistance to aggression is not simply justified, but imperative".
In 1905 he founded the India House
and The Indian Sociologist
, which rapidly developed as an organised meeting point for radical nationalists among Indian students in Britain
at the time and one of the most prominent centres for revolutionary Indian nationalism
outside India. Most famous among the members of this organisation was V.D. Savarkar. Krishna Varma moved to Paris in 1907, fearing prosecution. He died in 1930.
, Kutch province as Shamji, the son of Karsan Bhanushali (Karsan Nakhava; Nakhava is the surname while Bhanushali
is the community name), a labourer for cotton press company, and Gomatibai, who died when Shyamaji was only 11 years old. He was raised by his grandmother. After completing secondary education in Bhuj
he went to Mumbai
for further education at Wilson High School. Whilst in Mumbai he learnt Sanskrit
.
In 1875 Shyamaji got married to Bhanumati, a daughter of a wealthy businessman of the Bhatia community and sister of his school friend Ramdas. Then he got in touch with the nationalist Swami Dayananda Saraswati
, a radical reformer and an exponent of Vedas, who had founded Arya Samaj
. He became his disciple and was soon conducting lectures on Vedic philosophy and religion. In 1877, a public speaking tour secured him a great public recognition all over Bharat. He became the first non-Brahmin
to receive the prestigious title of Pandit by the Pandits of Kashi
in 1877. He came to the attention of Monier Williams
, an Oxford professor of Sanskrit who offered Shyamaji a job as his assistant.
. Passing his B.A.
in 1883, he presented a lecture on “the origin of writing in India” to the Royal Asiatic Society
. The speech was very well received and he was elected a non-resident member of the society. In 1881 he represented India at the Berlin
Congress of Orientalists
.
State; but ill health forced him to retire from this post with a lump sum gratuity of RS 32052 for his service. After a short stay in Mumbai, he settled in Ajmer
, headquarters of his Guru Swami Dayananda Saraswati, and continued his practice at the British Court in Ajmer. He invested his income in three cotton presses and secured sufficient permanent income to be independent for the rest of his life. He served for the Maharaja of Udaipur
as a council member from 1893 to 1895, followed by the position of Diwan of Junagadh
State. He resigned in 1897 after a bitter experience with a British agent that shook his faith in British Rule.
bill controversy of 1890. However, he rejected the petitioning, praying, protesting, cooperating and collaborating policy of the Congress Party, which he considered undignified and shameful. In 1897, following the atrocities inflicted by the British government during the plague crisis in Poona, he supported the assassination of the Commissioner of Plague by the Chapekar brothers but he soon decided to fight for Indian Independence in Britain.
and studied Herbert Spencer
's writings in his spare time. In 1900 he bought an expensive house in Highgate
. His home became a base for all political leaders of India. Gandhi, Lenin, Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai
, Gopal Krishna Gokhale
, etc., all visited him to discuss the Indian Independence Movement. Avoiding the Indian National Congress
, he kept in contact with rationalists, free thinker
s, national and social democrats, socialists
, Irish republicans
, etc.
Shyamji was inspired by the philosophy of Herbert Spencer. At Spencer's funeral in 1903, he announced the donation of £1,000 to establish a lectureship at University of Oxford
in tribute to him and his work. A year later he announced that Herbert Spencer Indian fellowships of RS 2000 each were to be awarded to enable Indian graduates to finish their education in England. He also announced additional fellowship in memory of the late Swami Dayananda Saraswati
, the founder of Arya Samaj
, along with another four fellowships in the future.
, an organ of freedom and of political, social and religious reform. This was an assertive, ideological monthly aimed at inspiring mass opposition to British rule, which stimulated many intellectuals to fight for the freedom of India.
as a hostel for Indian students, based at 65, Cromwell Avenue, Highgate. This living accommodation for 25 students was formally inaugurated on 1 July by Henry Hyndman
, of the Social Democratic Federation
, in the presence of Dadabhai Naoroji
, Lala Lajpat Rai
, Madam Cama, Mr. Swinney (of the London Positivist Society
), Mr. Harry Quelch
(the editor of the Social Democratic Federation's Justice) and Charlotte Despard
, the Irish Republican and suffragette
. Declaring India House open, Hyndman remarked, “As things stands, loyalty to Great Britain means treachery to India. The institution of this India House means a great step in that direction of Indian growth and Indian emancipation, and some of those who are here this afternoon may live to witness the fruits of its triumphant success.” Shyamji hoped India House would incubate Indian revolutionaries and Bhikaiji Cama
, Sardarsinh Rana, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
, Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
, and Lala Hardayal were all associated with it.
Later in 1905, Shyamji attended the United Congress of Democrats held at Holborn Town Hall as a delegate of the India Home Rule Society. His resolution on India received an enthusiastic ovation from the entire conference. Shyamji’s activities in England
aroused the concern of the British government: He was disbarred from Inner Temple and removed from the membership list on 30 April 1909 for writing anti-British articles in The Indian Sociologist
. Most of the British press were anti–Shyamji and carried outrageous allegations against him and his newspaper. He defended them boldly. The Times
referred to him as the “Notorious Krishnavarma”. Many newspapers criticised the British progressives who supported Shyamji and his view. His movements were closely watched by British Secret Services, so he decided to shift his headquarters to Paris
, leaving India House in charge of Vir Savarkar. Shyamji left Britain secretly before the government tried to arrest him.
Shyamji's work in Paris helped gain support for Indian Independence from European countries. He agitated for the release of Savarker and acquired great support all over Europe and Russia. Guy Aldred
wrote an article in the Daily Herald under the heading of “Savarker the Hindu Patriot whose sentences expire on 24th December 1960”, helping create support in England, too. In 1914 his presence became an embarrassment as French politicians had invited King George V
to Paris to set a final seal on the Entente Cordiale
. Shyamji foresaw this and shifted his headquarters to Geneva
. Here the Swiss government imposed political restrictions during the entire period of World War I
. He kept in touch with his contacts, but he could not support them directly. He spent time with Dr. Briess, president of the Pro India Committee in Geneva, whom he later discovered was a paid secret agent of the British government.
to endow a lectureship to be called the President Woodrow Wilson
Lectureship for the discourse on the best means of acquiring and safe guarding national independence consistently with freedom, justice, and the right of asylum accorded to political refugees. It is said that the league rejected his offer due to political pressure from British government. A similar offer was made to the Swiss government which was also turned down. He offered another lectureship at the banquet given by Press Association of Geneva where 250 journalists and celebrities, including the presidents of Swiss Federation and the League of Nations. Shyamji’s offer was applauded on the spot but nothing came of it. Shyamji was disappointed with the response and he published all his abortive correspondence on this matter in the next issue of the Sociologist appearing in December 1920, after a lapse of almost six years.
News of his death was suppressed by the British government in India. Nevertheless tributes were paid to him by Sardar Bhagat Singh and his co-revolutionist brothers in Lahore
Jail where they were undergoing a long-term drawn-out trial. Maratha, a daily newspaper started by Shri Tilak in Marathi
, paid very touching tribute to him as a great revolutionary.
Pandit Shyamaji Krishnavarma did not live to witness the independence of Bharat, but his confidence in India gaining its freedom from British rule in future was so strong that he made prepaid arrangements with the local government of Geneva and St Georges cemetery to preserve his and his wife’s ashes (Asthis) at the cemetery for 100 years and to send their urns to India whenever it became independent during that period. The Congress Party who took over control of India at the end of British rule
did not bother to pursue the matter of bringing his ashes for sectarian reasons.
Informed about the proposal made by Dr Prithwindra Mukherjee
(a Paris-based historian) to late Prime Minister Smt Indira Gandhi, in 1980, and by the interest she showed in favour of repatriating these relics, Shri Mangal Lakhamshi Bhanushali of the Shyamji Krishna Varma Smarak Samiti from Mumbai approached Dr Mukherjee in August 1989. Encouraged by the "good news of the progress achieved" through Mukherjee's "continuous efforts," Shri Bhanushali in his letter to Mukherjee (9 November 1989) requested him "to activate the concerned Embassy Staff," which was earnestly followed up by Mukherjee, by contacting the Indian delegations in Paris and Geneva. Consequently, the joint efforts of Mangal Lakhamshi Bhanushali, corporator of Mumbai and trustee of Krishnavarma Foundation, Mandavi, Shri Kirit Somaiya, member of parliament, Mulund, Mumbai, Hemantkumar Padhya, researcher and founder/president of Hindu Swatantryavir Smruti Sansthanam, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom, Shri Vinod Khanna, MP, Bollywood actor and minister of External Affairs for the government of India, Shri Narendra Modi, chief minister of Gujarat State and many others, finally succeeded in returning the urns of Pandit Shyamaji and his wife Bhanumati, which were officially handed over to the Chief Minister of Gujarat State on August 22, 2003, by the Ville de Genève and the Swiss government 55 years after Indian Independence.
In 1970s, a new town developed in his native state of Kutch, was named after him as Shyamji Krishna Varmanagar
in his memory and honor.
श्यामजी कृष्ण वर्मा एक क्रन्तिकारी थे और उन्होंने अपना देहत्याग भारत के आज़ाद होने से पहेले ही कर दिया था, जिनके अस्थि जर्मनी में ७३ साल तक इंतज़ार करते रहे | उनकी इच्छा ये थी के उनकी अस्थियो को आज़ाद भारतमें ही लायी जाये | लेकिन आज़ादी के ५० से ज्यादा वर्षो के बाद भी भारत माताके इस सपूतकी अंतिम इच्छा पुरु नहीं हुई थी | लेकिन हमारे(गुजरात के) माननीय मुख्यमंत्री श्री नरेन्द्रभाई मोदीजी ( Narendra Modi
) ने २००३ में उन अस्थियोके भारत लाके उनकी अंतिम इच्छा को पूर्ण किया | उनके नामका जो मेमोरिअल कच्छ में बन रहा हे(जिसका उद्घाटन १३-१२-२०१० को हे) उसके बारेमे थोडा देखियो इस लिंक पर :
Shree-Shyamji-Krishna-Varma-Memorial::http://hvmajithiya.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/shree-shyamji-krishna-varma-memorial.pdf
Revolutionary movement for Indian independence
The Revolutionary movement for Indian independence is often a less-highlighted aspect of the Indian independence movement -- the underground revolutionary factions. The groups believing in armed revolution against the ruling British fall into this category. The revolutionary groups were...
, lawyer and journalist who founded the Indian Home Rule Society
Indian Home Rule Society
The Indian Home Rule Society was an Indian organisation founded in London in 1905 that sought to promote the cause of self-rule in British India. The organisation was founded by Shyamji Krishna Varma, with support from a number of prominent Indian nationalists in Britain at the time, including...
, India House
India House
India House was an informal Indian nationalist organisation based in London between 1905 and 1910. With the patronage of Shyamji Krishna Varma, its home in a student residence in Highgate, North London was launched to promote nationalist views among Indian students in Britain...
and The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist was an Indian nationalist publication in the early twentieth century. Its subtitle was An Organ of Freedom, and Political, Social, and Religious Reform....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. A graduate of Balliol College, Krishna Varma was a noted scholar in Sanskrit and other Indian languages. He pursued a brief legal career in India and served as the Divan
Divan
A divan was a high governmental body in a number of Islamic states, or its chief official .-Etymology:...
of a number of Indian princely states in India. He had, however, differences with Crown authority, was dismissed following a supposed conspiracy of local British officials at Junagadh and chose to return to England. An admirer of Dayanand Saraswati's approach of Cultural nationalism
Cultural nationalism
Cultural nationalism is a form of nationalism in which the nation is defined by a shared culture. It is an intermediate position between ethnic nationalism on one hand and liberal nationalism on the other....
, and of Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer was an English philosopher, biologist, sociologist, and prominent classical liberal political theorist of the Victorian era....
, Krishna Varma believed in Spencer's dictum "Resistance to aggression is not simply justified, but imperative".
In 1905 he founded the India House
India House
India House was an informal Indian nationalist organisation based in London between 1905 and 1910. With the patronage of Shyamji Krishna Varma, its home in a student residence in Highgate, North London was launched to promote nationalist views among Indian students in Britain...
and The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist was an Indian nationalist publication in the early twentieth century. Its subtitle was An Organ of Freedom, and Political, Social, and Religious Reform....
, which rapidly developed as an organised meeting point for radical nationalists among Indian students in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
at the time and one of the most prominent centres for revolutionary Indian nationalism
Revolutionary movement for Indian independence
The Revolutionary movement for Indian independence is often a less-highlighted aspect of the Indian independence movement -- the underground revolutionary factions. The groups believing in armed revolution against the ruling British fall into this category. The revolutionary groups were...
outside India. Most famous among the members of this organisation was V.D. Savarkar. Krishna Varma moved to Paris in 1907, fearing prosecution. He died in 1930.
Early life
Shyamaji Krishna Varma was born on October 30, 1857 in MandviMandvi
Mandvi is a city and a Municipality in Kachchh district in the Indian state of Gujarat. It was once a major port of the region and summer retreat for Maharao of the Kachchh. The old city had a surrounding fort, and remains of the fort wall can still be seen to this day...
, Kutch province as Shamji, the son of Karsan Bhanushali (Karsan Nakhava; Nakhava is the surname while Bhanushali
Bhanushali
Bhanushali / Bhānshali / Bhansali is a Hindu, Kshatriya community mainly belonging to State of Gujarat in India....
is the community name), a labourer for cotton press company, and Gomatibai, who died when Shyamaji was only 11 years old. He was raised by his grandmother. After completing secondary education in Bhuj
Bhuj
Bhuj is a city and a municipality in Kachchh district in the state of Gujarat, India.-History:It was established by Rao Hamirji in 1510 and was made the state capital by Rao Khengarji I in 1549. Its foundation stone as state capital laid formally on Vikram Samvat 1604 Maagha 5th...
he went to Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
for further education at Wilson High School. Whilst in Mumbai he learnt Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
.
In 1875 Shyamaji got married to Bhanumati, a daughter of a wealthy businessman of the Bhatia community and sister of his school friend Ramdas. Then he got in touch with the nationalist Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati was an important Hindu religious scholar, reformer, and founder of the Arya Samaj, a Hindu reform movement. He was the first to give the call for Swarajya – "India for Indians" – in 1876, later taken up by Lokmanya Tilak...
, a radical reformer and an exponent of Vedas, who had founded Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 10 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda emphasized the ideals of brahmacharya...
. He became his disciple and was soon conducting lectures on Vedic philosophy and religion. In 1877, a public speaking tour secured him a great public recognition all over Bharat. He became the first non-Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
to receive the prestigious title of Pandit by the Pandits of Kashi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
in 1877. He came to the attention of Monier Williams
Monier Monier-Williams
Sir Monier Monier-Williams, KCIE was the second Boden Professor of Sanskrit at Oxford University, England...
, an Oxford professor of Sanskrit who offered Shyamaji a job as his assistant.
Oxford
Shyamji arrived in England and joined Balliol College, Oxford on 25 April 1879 with the recommendation of Professor Monier WilliamsMonier Monier-Williams
Sir Monier Monier-Williams, KCIE was the second Boden Professor of Sanskrit at Oxford University, England...
. Passing his B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in 1883, he presented a lecture on “the origin of writing in India” to the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
. The speech was very well received and he was elected a non-resident member of the society. In 1881 he represented India at the Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
Congress of Orientalists
Orientalism
Orientalism is a term used for the imitation or depiction of aspects of Eastern cultures in the West by writers, designers and artists, as well as having other meanings...
.
Legal career
He returned to India in 1885 and started practice as a lawyer. Then he was appointed as Diwan (chief minister) by the King of RatlamRatlam
Ratlam , known historically as Ratnapuri, is a city in the Malwa region in Madhya Pradesh state of central India. The town of Ratlam lies 480 m above sea level. It is the administrative headquarters of Ratlam District....
State; but ill health forced him to retire from this post with a lump sum gratuity of RS 32052 for his service. After a short stay in Mumbai, he settled in Ajmer
Ajmer
Ajmer , formerly written as Ajmere, is a city in Ajmer District in Rajasthan state in India. Ajmer has a population of around 800,000 , and is located west of the Rajasthan state capital Jaipur, 200 km from Jodhpur, 274 km from Udaipur, 439 km from Jaisalmer, and 391 km from...
, headquarters of his Guru Swami Dayananda Saraswati, and continued his practice at the British Court in Ajmer. He invested his income in three cotton presses and secured sufficient permanent income to be independent for the rest of his life. He served for the Maharaja of Udaipur
Udaipur
Udaipur , also known as the City of Lakes, is a city, a Municipal Council and the administrative headquarters of the Udaipur district in the state of Rajasthan in western India. It is located southwest of the state capital, Jaipur, west of Kota, and northeast from Ahmedabad...
as a council member from 1893 to 1895, followed by the position of Diwan of Junagadh
Junagadh
Junagadh is the headquarters of Junagadh district in the Indian state of Gujarat. The city is the 7th largest in Gujarat. The city is located at the foot of the Girnar hills, 355 km south west of state capital Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad. The city is in western India. Literally translated,...
State. He resigned in 1897 after a bitter experience with a British agent that shook his faith in British Rule.
Nationalism
Krishna Varma was very much impressed with Lokmanya Tilak and supported him during the Age of ConsentAge of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
bill controversy of 1890. However, he rejected the petitioning, praying, protesting, cooperating and collaborating policy of the Congress Party, which he considered undignified and shameful. In 1897, following the atrocities inflicted by the British government during the plague crisis in Poona, he supported the assassination of the Commissioner of Plague by the Chapekar brothers but he soon decided to fight for Indian Independence in Britain.
England
Upon his arrival in London, he stayed at the Inner TempleInner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
and studied Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer was an English philosopher, biologist, sociologist, and prominent classical liberal political theorist of the Victorian era....
's writings in his spare time. In 1900 he bought an expensive house in Highgate
Highgate
Highgate is an area of North London on the north-eastern corner of Hampstead Heath.Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has an active conservation body, the Highgate Society, to protect its character....
. His home became a base for all political leaders of India. Gandhi, Lenin, Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai was an Indian author, freedom fighter and politician who is chiefly remembered as a leader in the Indian fight for freedom from the British Raj. He was popularly known as Punjab Kesari or Sher-e-Punjab meaning the samem and was part of the Lal Bal Pal trio...
, Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Gopal Krishna Gokhale, CIE was one of the founding social and political leaders during the Indian Independence Movement against the British Empire in India. Gokhale was a senior leader of the Indian National Congress and founder of the Servants of India Society...
, etc., all visited him to discuss the Indian Independence Movement. Avoiding the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
, he kept in contact with rationalists, free thinker
Freethought
Freethought is a philosophical viewpoint that holds that opinions should be formed on the basis of science, logic, and reason, and should not be influenced by authority, tradition, or other dogmas...
s, national and social democrats, socialists
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, Irish republicans
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
, etc.
Shyamji was inspired by the philosophy of Herbert Spencer. At Spencer's funeral in 1903, he announced the donation of £1,000 to establish a lectureship at University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
in tribute to him and his work. A year later he announced that Herbert Spencer Indian fellowships of RS 2000 each were to be awarded to enable Indian graduates to finish their education in England. He also announced additional fellowship in memory of the late Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati was an important Hindu religious scholar, reformer, and founder of the Arya Samaj, a Hindu reform movement. He was the first to give the call for Swarajya – "India for Indians" – in 1876, later taken up by Lokmanya Tilak...
, the founder of Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 10 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda emphasized the ideals of brahmacharya...
, along with another four fellowships in the future.
Political activism
In 1905, Shyamji focused his activity as a political propagandist and organiser for the complete independence of India. Shyamji made his debut in Indian politics by publishing the first issue of his English monthly, The Indian SociologistThe Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist was an Indian nationalist publication in the early twentieth century. Its subtitle was An Organ of Freedom, and Political, Social, and Religious Reform....
, an organ of freedom and of political, social and religious reform. This was an assertive, ideological monthly aimed at inspiring mass opposition to British rule, which stimulated many intellectuals to fight for the freedom of India.
Indian Home Rule Society
On 18 February 1905 Shyamji inaugurated a new organisation called The Indian Home Rule Society. The first meeting, held at his Highgate home, unanimously decided to found The Indian Home Rule Society with the object of:- 1) Securing Home Rule for India
- 2) Carrying on Propaganda in England by all practical means with a view to attain the same.
- 3) Spreading among the people of India the objectives of freedom and national unity.
India House
As many Indian students faced racist attitudes when seeking accommodations, he founded India HouseIndia House
India House was an informal Indian nationalist organisation based in London between 1905 and 1910. With the patronage of Shyamji Krishna Varma, its home in a student residence in Highgate, North London was launched to promote nationalist views among Indian students in Britain...
as a hostel for Indian students, based at 65, Cromwell Avenue, Highgate. This living accommodation for 25 students was formally inaugurated on 1 July by Henry Hyndman
Henry Hyndman
Henry Mayers Hyndman was an English writer and politician, and the founder of the Social Democratic Federation and the National Socialist Party.-Early years:...
, of the Social Democratic Federation
Social Democratic Federation
The Social Democratic Federation was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on June 7, 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury and Eleanor Marx. However, Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx's long-term...
, in the presence of Dadabhai Naoroji
Dadabhai Naoroji
Dadabhai Naoroji , known as the Grand Old Man of India, was a Parsi intellectual, educator, cotton trader, and an early Indian political leader. His book Poverty and Un-British Rule in India brought attention to the draining of India's wealth into Britain...
, Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai was an Indian author, freedom fighter and politician who is chiefly remembered as a leader in the Indian fight for freedom from the British Raj. He was popularly known as Punjab Kesari or Sher-e-Punjab meaning the samem and was part of the Lal Bal Pal trio...
, Madam Cama, Mr. Swinney (of the London Positivist Society
London Positivist Society
The London Positivist Society was a philosophical circle that met in London, England, between 1867 and 1974. In 1934 it merged with the English Positivist Committee...
), Mr. Harry Quelch
Harry Quelch
Henry "Harry" Quelch , known exclusively by his nickname "Harry," was one of the first Marxists in Great Britain. He was a socialist activist, journalist and trade unionist...
(the editor of the Social Democratic Federation's Justice) and Charlotte Despard
Charlotte Despard
Charlotte Despard was a British-born, later Irish-based suffragist, novelist and Sinn Féin activist....
, the Irish Republican and suffragette
Suffragette
"Suffragette" is a term coined by the Daily Mail newspaper as a derogatory label for members of the late 19th and early 20th century movement for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, in particular members of the Women's Social and Political Union...
. Declaring India House open, Hyndman remarked, “As things stands, loyalty to Great Britain means treachery to India. The institution of this India House means a great step in that direction of Indian growth and Indian emancipation, and some of those who are here this afternoon may live to witness the fruits of its triumphant success.” Shyamji hoped India House would incubate Indian revolutionaries and Bhikaiji Cama
Bhikaiji Cama
Bhikaiji Rustom CamaBhikhai- is the name as it appears in the biographies. Another common form is Bhikai- , as it appears on the postage stamp. The name is also frequently misspelled 'Bhikha-' , which is a male name...
, Sardarsinh Rana, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
Vināyak Dāmodar Sāvarkar was an Indian freedom fighter, revolutionary and politician. He was the proponent of liberty as the ultimate ideal. Savarkar was a poet, writer and playwright...
, Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
Virendranath Chattopadhyaya
Virendranath Chattopadhyaya alias Chatto was a prominent Hindu Indian revolutionary who aimed to overthrow the British Raj in India by using violence as a tool...
, and Lala Hardayal were all associated with it.
Later in 1905, Shyamji attended the United Congress of Democrats held at Holborn Town Hall as a delegate of the India Home Rule Society. His resolution on India received an enthusiastic ovation from the entire conference. Shyamji’s activities in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
aroused the concern of the British government: He was disbarred from Inner Temple and removed from the membership list on 30 April 1909 for writing anti-British articles in The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist
The Indian Sociologist was an Indian nationalist publication in the early twentieth century. Its subtitle was An Organ of Freedom, and Political, Social, and Religious Reform....
. Most of the British press were anti–Shyamji and carried outrageous allegations against him and his newspaper. He defended them boldly. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
referred to him as the “Notorious Krishnavarma”. Many newspapers criticised the British progressives who supported Shyamji and his view. His movements were closely watched by British Secret Services, so he decided to shift his headquarters to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, leaving India House in charge of Vir Savarkar. Shyamji left Britain secretly before the government tried to arrest him.
Paris and Geneva
He arrived in Paris in early 1907 to continue his work. The British government tried to have him extradited from France without success as he gained the support of many top French politicians. Shyamji’s name was dragged into the sensational trial of Mr Merlin, an Englishman, at Bow Street Magistrates' Court, for writing an article in liberators published by Shyamji’s friend, Mr. James.Shyamji's work in Paris helped gain support for Indian Independence from European countries. He agitated for the release of Savarker and acquired great support all over Europe and Russia. Guy Aldred
Guy Aldred
Guy Alfred Aldred - often Guy A. Aldred - was a British anarchist communist and a prominent member of the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation...
wrote an article in the Daily Herald under the heading of “Savarker the Hindu Patriot whose sentences expire on 24th December 1960”, helping create support in England, too. In 1914 his presence became an embarrassment as French politicians had invited King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
to Paris to set a final seal on the Entente Cordiale
Entente Cordiale
The Entente Cordiale was a series of agreements signed on 8 April 1904 between the United Kingdom and the French Republic. Beyond the immediate concerns of colonial expansion addressed by the agreement, the signing of the Entente Cordiale marked the end of almost a millennium of intermittent...
. Shyamji foresaw this and shifted his headquarters to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. Here the Swiss government imposed political restrictions during the entire period of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He kept in touch with his contacts, but he could not support them directly. He spent time with Dr. Briess, president of the Pro India Committee in Geneva, whom he later discovered was a paid secret agent of the British government.
Post World War I
He offered a sum of 10,000 francs to the League of NationsLeague of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
to endow a lectureship to be called the President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
Lectureship for the discourse on the best means of acquiring and safe guarding national independence consistently with freedom, justice, and the right of asylum accorded to political refugees. It is said that the league rejected his offer due to political pressure from British government. A similar offer was made to the Swiss government which was also turned down. He offered another lectureship at the banquet given by Press Association of Geneva where 250 journalists and celebrities, including the presidents of Swiss Federation and the League of Nations. Shyamji’s offer was applauded on the spot but nothing came of it. Shyamji was disappointed with the response and he published all his abortive correspondence on this matter in the next issue of the Sociologist appearing in December 1920, after a lapse of almost six years.
Death and commemoration
He published two more issues of Indian Sociologist in August and September 1922, before ill health prevented him continuing. He died in hospital at 11:30pm on March 30, 1930 leaving his wife, Shrimati Bhanumati Krishnavarma.News of his death was suppressed by the British government in India. Nevertheless tributes were paid to him by Sardar Bhagat Singh and his co-revolutionist brothers in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
Jail where they were undergoing a long-term drawn-out trial. Maratha, a daily newspaper started by Shri Tilak in Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
, paid very touching tribute to him as a great revolutionary.
Pandit Shyamaji Krishnavarma did not live to witness the independence of Bharat, but his confidence in India gaining its freedom from British rule in future was so strong that he made prepaid arrangements with the local government of Geneva and St Georges cemetery to preserve his and his wife’s ashes (Asthis) at the cemetery for 100 years and to send their urns to India whenever it became independent during that period. The Congress Party who took over control of India at the end of British rule
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
did not bother to pursue the matter of bringing his ashes for sectarian reasons.
Informed about the proposal made by Dr Prithwindra Mukherjee
Prithwindra Mukherjee
Prithwindra Mukherjee retired in 2003 from a career as a researcher in the Human and Social Sciences Department of the French National Centre of Scientific Research in Paris...
(a Paris-based historian) to late Prime Minister Smt Indira Gandhi, in 1980, and by the interest she showed in favour of repatriating these relics, Shri Mangal Lakhamshi Bhanushali of the Shyamji Krishna Varma Smarak Samiti from Mumbai approached Dr Mukherjee in August 1989. Encouraged by the "good news of the progress achieved" through Mukherjee's "continuous efforts," Shri Bhanushali in his letter to Mukherjee (9 November 1989) requested him "to activate the concerned Embassy Staff," which was earnestly followed up by Mukherjee, by contacting the Indian delegations in Paris and Geneva. Consequently, the joint efforts of Mangal Lakhamshi Bhanushali, corporator of Mumbai and trustee of Krishnavarma Foundation, Mandavi, Shri Kirit Somaiya, member of parliament, Mulund, Mumbai, Hemantkumar Padhya, researcher and founder/president of Hindu Swatantryavir Smruti Sansthanam, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom, Shri Vinod Khanna, MP, Bollywood actor and minister of External Affairs for the government of India, Shri Narendra Modi, chief minister of Gujarat State and many others, finally succeeded in returning the urns of Pandit Shyamaji and his wife Bhanumati, which were officially handed over to the Chief Minister of Gujarat State on August 22, 2003, by the Ville de Genève and the Swiss government 55 years after Indian Independence.
In 1970s, a new town developed in his native state of Kutch, was named after him as Shyamji Krishna Varmanagar
S. K. Varmanagar
S. K. Varmanagar is a town in India, developed decade of 1970, located in Lakhpat Taluka of Kutch District of Gujarat. It is named after famous freedom fighter from Kutch, Shyamji Krishna Varma and as such complete name of town is Shyamji Krishna Varmanagar, however, abbreviated name S.K...
in his memory and honor.
श्यामजी कृष्ण वर्मा एक क्रन्तिकारी थे और उन्होंने अपना देहत्याग भारत के आज़ाद होने से पहेले ही कर दिया था, जिनके अस्थि जर्मनी में ७३ साल तक इंतज़ार करते रहे | उनकी इच्छा ये थी के उनकी अस्थियो को आज़ाद भारतमें ही लायी जाये | लेकिन आज़ादी के ५० से ज्यादा वर्षो के बाद भी भारत माताके इस सपूतकी अंतिम इच्छा पुरु नहीं हुई थी | लेकिन हमारे(गुजरात के) माननीय मुख्यमंत्री श्री नरेन्द्रभाई मोदीजी ( Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi
Narendra Damodardas Modi is the current Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat.He was born in a middle class family in Vadnagar; and is a member of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh since childhood, as also an active politician since early in life. He holds a masters degree in political...
) ने २००३ में उन अस्थियोके भारत लाके उनकी अंतिम इच्छा को पूर्ण किया | उनके नामका जो मेमोरिअल कच्छ में बन रहा हे(जिसका उद्घाटन १३-१२-२०१० को हे) उसके बारेमे थोडा देखियो इस लिंक पर :
Shree-Shyamji-Krishna-Varma-Memorial::http://hvmajithiya.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/shree-shyamji-krishna-varma-memorial.pdf