Sir Thiruvarur Muthuswamy Iyer ( )
KCIE (b.January 28, 1832
- d.
January 25, 1895) was an Indian
lawyer who, in 1877, became the first native Indian
to be appointed as Judge of the Madras High Court
. He also functioned as the Acting
Chief Justice of the Madras High Court for a
brief period.
Early life
Muthuswamy Iyer was born in a poor
Vadama
Brahmin family in Vuchuwadi,
Madras Presidency,
British India on January 28, 1832.
When he
was young, Muthuswamy Iyer's father died and he moved with his
mother to Thiruvarur
to make a living. At Thiruvarur, Muthuswamy
Iyer found employment as village accountant. However, his mother
died soon afterward leaving Muthuswamy Iyer with little support.
Around this time, Muthuswamy Iyer's talents were recognized by the
tehsildar Naicken who arranged for the former to study in
Madras as a companion to his young nephew. In 1854, Muthuswamy Iyer
won a prize of 500
rupees offered to the
students of the Madras presidency by the council of education for
the best English essay. This success brought him to the notice of
Sir
Alexander John
Arbuthnot and Mr. Justice Holloway.
He was offered help to
proceed to England
and compete
for the civil service, but being a
Brahmin and married, he declined to cross
the ocean. Instead he entered the subordinate government
service, and was employed in such various posts as school-teacher,
record-keeper in Tanjore, and in 1856 deputy-inspector of schools.
At this time the Madras authorities instituted the examination for
the office of pleaders. Muthuswamy came out first in the
examinations.
Descendants of his can still be found in
Mayavaram, Tamil Nadu.Muthuswamy was then appointed in succession
district munsiff at Tranquebar
, deputy-collector in Tanjore in 1859, sub-judge of
south Kanara
in 1865, and
a magistrate of police at Madras in 1868. While serving as the
magistrate of police, Muthuswamy Iyer obtained his law degree law
from the Presidency College, Madras
.He also held a degree in Sanskrit at that
time.
Legal career
Muthuswamy Iyer commenced his legal career immediately after
graduation. He was appointed a judge of the Court of Small Causes
in 1871. The very next year, he was made Fellow of
Madras University. In 1877, the
Madras Government took the controversial
decision to appoint him as the first Indian judge of the High Court
of Madras.
Appointment to the bench of Madras High Court and
controversy
In 1877, Muthuswamy Iyer was appointed to the bench of the High
Court of Madras. He was the first Indian to be appointed to this
prestigious post. However, Muthuswamy's appointment was vehemently
condemned by a Madras newspaper called
The Native Public
Opinion. This prompted a strong reaction from Indian
nationalists who founded
The Hindu
newspaper to voice public opinion against the outrage.
Later career
Muthuswami Iyer served as a judge of the Madras High Court from
1877 to 1895. During the later part of his life, he even served as
the Acting Chief Justice, the first Indian to do so.
Reforms
During his early career, Muthuswamy Iyer also served as the
President of the
Malabar Marriage Commission. During his
tenure as President of the Commission, he campaigned for the legal
recognition of
Sambandham and other forms
of marriage practised in the
Malabar. In
1872, Muthuswamy Iyer established the Widow Remarriage Association
in Madras and advocated remarriage of Brahmin widows.
In 1872, he was nominated fellow of the Madras University. He
became a
syndic in 1877.
He was also invited to
attend the Coronation Durbar at Delhi
in
1877.
Honors
In 1878, Muthuswami Iyer was created a
Companion of the Most Eminent Order
of the Indian Empire. In 1893, he was knighted for his services
to the Crown.
Death
Muthuswami Iyer died in January 1895 after an illness of ten days.
On his death,
Sir S. Subramania Iyer took the seat in the
bench of the Madras High Court left vacant by his death.
A statue of Muthuswami Iyer was erected in the precints of the
Madras High Court campus on May 23, 1895.
Controversial stand on temple entry
Being a devout Brahmin, Muthuswami Iyer literally interpreted the
dharma-shastras and Hindu religious texts and rigorously followed
them. As a result, some of his speeches on caste and temple-entry
have been controversial.
Muthuswami Iyer once said :
Another remark of his is regarded by the intellectuals of the
Dravidar Kazhagam as blatantly
casteist:
See also
Notes
- Encounter and
Identities in Modern India
- Chidambaram Pillai, Page 2
References
Wikis
Map
Search
