Tamil Nadu Timeline

PoliticsMadras State (Congress era)

C. Rajagopalachari becomes Governor-General of India

· New Delhi

C. Rajagopalachari becomes Governor-General of India
India Post, Government of India, GODL-India · Wikimedia Commons

C. Rajagopalachari succeeded Lord Mountbatten as Governor-General, the only Indian to hold the office.

C. Rajagopalachari, the Congress leader from the Madras Presidency, took office as Governor-General of India on 21 June 1948, succeeding Lord Mountbatten. He had earlier served as the first Governor of West Bengal and as acting Governor-General in November 1947. He was the only Indian-born holder of the office, which was abolished when India became a republic on 26 January 1950. He later returned to Madras politics as Chief Minister from 1952 to 1954.

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  1. 1946

    1. 9 Dec 1946New DelhiPolitics

      Madras members join the Constituent Assembly

      With a sizeable contingent from the Madras Province, the Constituent Assembly of India held its first sitting in New Delhi.

  2. 1947

    1. 23 Mar 1947 to 6 Apr 1949ChennaiGovernance

      O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiyar becomes Premier

      O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiyar, backed by Kamaraj, became Premier of Madras and led the province through independence.

  3. 1949

    1. 6 Apr 1949 to 10 Apr 1952ChennaiPolitics

      P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja becomes Premier of Madras

      P. S. Kumaraswamy Raja succeeded O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiyar as Premier and later became the first Chief Minister of Madras State.

  4. 1951

    1. Apr 1951New DelhiLaw Justice

      Supreme Court strikes down the Communal G.O. in Champakam Dorairajan case

      Madras State's caste-based Communal Government Order on college admissions was struck down by the Supreme Court.

    2. 18 Jun 1951New DelhiLegislation

      First Amendment enables reservation for backward classes

      Parliament passed the First Amendment, allowing special provisions for socially and educationally backward classes.

  5. 1954

    1. 1954New DelhiCulture

      Rajaji and C. V. Raman among first Bharat Ratna recipients

      C. Rajagopalachari and the physicist C. V. Raman, both from Tamil Nadu, were among the three first recipients of the Bharat Ratna.

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