Congress

Birth of C. Rajagopalachari

C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji), later Chief Minister of Madras and the last Governor-General of India, was born at Thorapalli.

Madras Mahajana Sabha formed

The Madras Mahajana Sabha, an early political association of educated Indians in the Madras Presidency, was formed in 1884.

Madras delegates at the first Indian National Congress

Of the 72 delegates at the first session of the Indian National Congress in Bombay, 22 came from the Madras Presidency.

Indian National Congress holds first Madras session

The third session of the Indian National Congress met in Madras under the presidency of Badruddin Tyabji.

Congress session in Madras presided by Alfred Webb

In December 1894 Madras hosted the tenth Indian National Congress session, presided over by Alfred Webb, an Irish nationalist MP.

Congress session in Madras presided by Ananda Mohan Bose

The fourteenth session of the Indian National Congress met in Madras in December 1898 under Ananda Mohan Bose.

Congress session in Madras presided by Lalmohan Ghosh

The nineteenth Congress session met in Madras in December 1903; president Lalmohan Ghosh called for compulsory primary education.

Congress session in Madras after the Surat split

A year after the Congress split at Surat, the moderate-led Congress met in Madras in December 1908 under Rash Behari Ghosh.

Congress session in Madras presided by Bhupendra Nath Bose

The Indian National Congress held its 1914 annual session in Madras under Bhupendra Nath Bose, months after the First World War began.

Madras Presidency Association formed

The Madras Presidency Association was set up by non-Brahmin Congressmen to press for non-Brahmin representation inside the national movement.

Periyar joins the Indian National Congress

E. V. Ramasamy of Erode, later known as Periyar, joined the Indian National Congress, beginning a political career that later led to the Self-Respect Movement.

Gandhi conceives the Rowlatt hartal in Madras

While staying with C. Rajagopalachari in Madras, Gandhi conceived a nationwide hartal against the Rowlatt Act, observed on 6 April 1919.

Gandhi adopts the loincloth at Madurai

During a tour of the Madras Presidency, Mahatma Gandhi gave up his full attire and began wearing only a loincloth at Madurai.

Cheranmadevi Gurukulam controversy

Separate dining for Brahmin and non-Brahmin students at a Congress-funded gurukulam at Cheranmadevi caused a major controversy.

Periyar leaves Congress and starts the Self-Respect Movement

After his resolution on communal representation was not allowed at the Kanchipuram conference, E. V. Ramasamy left the Congress and began the Self-Respect Movement.

S. Srinivasa Iyengar presides over Gauhati Congress

S. Srinivasa Iyengar, a Swarajist leader from Madras, was president of the Indian National Congress at its Gauhati session.

P. Subbarayan forms independent ministry

After the Swaraj Party won the 1926 election but declined office, P. Subbarayan formed a ministry of independents with nominated support.

Neill Statue Satyagraha

Nationalists in Madras campaigned for the removal of the statue of Colonel James Neill from Mount Road.

Madras session of the Indian National Congress

The annual Congress session held in Madras under M. A. Ansari called for complete independence and a boycott of the Simon Commission.

Simon Commission boycott in Madras

Protesters in Madras demonstrated against the Simon Commission, and T. Prakasam famously defied police during the protest.

Vedaranyam Salt Satyagraha

C. Rajagopalachari led a march from Tiruchirappalli to Vedaranyam to break the salt law, the Tamil counterpart of the Dandi March.

Swarajists largest party in 1934 Madras council election

The Swaraj Party won the most seats in the last dyarchy-era Madras council election but refused office; the Raja of Bobbili stayed on.

Prohibition introduced in Salem district

The Rajaji ministry introduced prohibition of liquor in Salem district, the first such experiment in the Presidency.

Congress wins 1937 Madras Presidency election

The Indian National Congress won a large majority in the first Madras Legislative Assembly election under provincial autonomy, routing the Justice Party.

Muthuramalinga Thevar defeats the Raja of Ramnad

As the Congress candidate, Muthuramalinga Thevar beat the Raja of Ramnad in Ramanathapuram in the 1937 election.

K. V. Reddi Naidu heads interim ministry

When the Congress hesitated to take office after winning the 1937 election, the Governor installed an interim ministry under K. V. Reddi Naidu.

C. Rajagopalachari forms first Congress ministry

C. Rajagopalachari became Premier of Madras at the head of the first Congress government in the Presidency.

Madras Agriculturists Relief Act eases peasant debt

A law to reduce the debts of indebted farmers in the Madras Presidency was brought in by the Rajagopalachari ministry.

S. Satyamurti becomes Mayor of Madras

Congress leader S. Satyamurti served as Mayor of Madras and pressed for the Poondi reservoir to improve the city's water supply.

Madras Temple Entry Authorization and Indemnity Act

A law passed by the Rajagopalachari ministry lifted the bars on Dalits and Shanars entering Hindu temples across the Presidency.

Thyaga Bhoomi released and banned

Thyaga Bhoomi, K. Subramanyam's nationalist film adapted from a Kalki story, was banned by the British administration after release.

Dalits enter Madurai Meenakshi Temple

A. Vaidyanatha Iyer led a group of Dalits and Nadars into the Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai, defying orthodox opposition.

Subhas Chandra Bose received in Madurai

After launching the Forward Bloc, Subhas Chandra Bose visited Madurai, where Muthuramalinga Thevar organised his reception.

Congress ministry resigns over the Second World War

The Rajagopalachari ministry resigned in protest against the Viceroy declaring India at war without consultation, and Governor's rule followed.

K. Kamaraj becomes TNCC president

K. Kamaraj was elected president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, beginning his rise as the leading Congress organiser in the region.

Kamaraj elected Virudhunagar municipal chairman while in jail

While imprisoned for opposing war contributions, K. Kamaraj was elected chairman of the Virudhunagar municipality.

Rajagopalachari resigns from Congress over Pakistan resolution

C. Rajagopalachari left the Congress after his proposals to negotiate with the Muslim League were rejected, and opposed Quit India.

Quit India Movement in the Tamil districts

Congress leaders in the Tamil region were arrested as the Quit India Movement began, followed by strikes, sabotage and police firing.

Death of S. Satyamurti

Congress leader S. Satyamurti, a former Mayor of Madras and mentor of K. Kamaraj, died in Madras.

Rajagopalachari's C. R. formula

C. Rajagopalachari's proposal to resolve the Congress and Muslim League deadlock became the basis of the 1944 Gandhi and Jinnah talks.

1946 Madras Presidency election

The Congress won a majority in the 1946 Madras Legislative Assembly election, ending the period of Governor's rule.

Gandhi presides over Hindi Prachar Sabha silver jubilee

Gandhi came to Madras to preside at the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha's silver jubilee.

T. Prakasam becomes Premier of Madras

T. Prakasam was elected Congress legislature leader and formed a ministry, defeating the candidate backed by Rajagopalachari.

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.

O. P. Ramaswamy Reddiyar becomes Premier

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

India becomes independent; Madras Province

India gained independence and the Madras Presidency became Madras Province of the Dominion of India; Periyar called it a day of mourning.

C. Rajagopalachari becomes Governor-General of India

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

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.

First general election; Rajaji forms government

After the first general election left Congress short of a majority, C. Rajagopalachari was sworn in as Chief Minister of Madras State.

Rajaji's Modified Scheme of Elementary Education

Rajaji's two-shift school scheme, criticised as Kula Kalvi Thittam (hereditary education), triggered protests and was later dropped.

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.

K. Kamaraj becomes Chief Minister

After Rajaji's resignation, K. Kamaraj became Chief Minister of Madras State and served for over nine years.

Congress adopts 'socialistic pattern of society' at Avadi

Meeting at Avadi near Madras, the Indian National Congress adopted a socialistic pattern of society as its stated aim.

Kamaraj expands free schooling and midday meals

The Kamaraj government opened thousands of schools, extended free education and expanded free midday meals for schoolchildren.

DMK contests its first election

Won by Kamaraj's Congress, the 1957 Assembly election was the first in which the DMK took part after its founding.

Rajaji founds the Swatantra Party

Leaving the Congress, C. Rajagopalachari launched the Swatantra Party, which went on to ally with the DMK against Congress.

DMK becomes main opposition in 1962 election

Congress under Kamaraj retained power in 1962, while the DMK won 50 seats to become the principal opposition party.

Madras State starts an old-age pension scheme

A monthly pension for destitute old people was introduced by the state, decades ahead of the national old-age pension of 1995.

Kamaraj Plan; M. Bhaktavatsalam becomes Chief Minister

Kamaraj resigned as Chief Minister under his plan for senior leaders to work for the party, and M. Bhaktavatsalam succeeded him.

Kamaraj becomes Congress president and 'kingmaker'

As president of the Indian National Congress, K. Kamaraj guided the selection of two Prime Ministers.

C. Subramaniam becomes Union Food and Agriculture Minister

Under the leadership of C. Subramaniam of Madras, high-yielding seeds were introduced, starting the Green Revolution.

DMK wins the 1967 Assembly election

A DMK-led alliance defeated the Congress, ending Congress rule in Madras State; Kamaraj lost his own seat.

Kamaraj loses his seat to student leader P. Seenivasan

In the 1967 election, Congress president K. Kamaraj was defeated in Virudhunagar by the young DMK candidate P. Seenivasan.

DMK wins 184 seats in the 1971 election

The DMK, allied with Indira Gandhi's Congress, won a landslide in the first Assembly election held under the name Tamil Nadu.

Death of C. Rajagopalachari

C. Rajagopalachari, once Governor-General, Chief Minister of Madras and founder of the Swatantra Party, died in Madras at 94.

Death of K. Kamaraj

K. Kamaraj, former Chief Minister and Congress president, died in Madras and was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1976.

Kamaraj awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously

Former Chief Minister K. Kamaraj, who died in October 1975, was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna.

Congress-AIADMK alliance wins 34 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu

In the post-Emergency Lok Sabha election, the Congress-AIADMK-CPI alliance won 34 of Tamil Nadu's 39 seats even as the Janata Party took power nationally.

DMK-Congress alliance wins 37 of 39 Lok Sabha seats

The Congress (Indira) and DMK alliance won 37 of Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats, a setback for M. G. Ramachandran's ruling AIADMK.

MGR government dismissed, President's rule imposed

The Union government dismissed the AIADMK ministry and dissolved the Tamil Nadu assembly, imposing President's rule.

AIADMK re-elected, MGR sworn in for second term

Months after the DMK and Congress swept the Lok Sabha polls, the AIADMK won the May 1980 assembly election, bringing MGR back as Chief Minister.

AIADMK wins 1984 election while MGR is in hospital abroad

Contesting from a hospital in the United States, MGR led the AIADMK-Congress alliance to victory in the 1984 assembly election.

Congress-AIADMK alliance wins 38 of 39 Lok Sabha seats

Months after losing the state election, the reunited AIADMK and its ally the Congress won 38 of Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats.

Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi at Sriperumbudur

Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was killed by an LTTE suicide bomber at an election rally in Sriperumbudur.

Congress-AIADMK alliance sweeps all 39 Lok Sabha seats

In the election during which Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated at Sriperumbudur, the Congress-AIADMK alliance won all 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu.

Jayalalithaa becomes Chief Minister for the first time

The AIADMK-Congress alliance swept the June 1991 election and J. Jayalalithaa became Chief Minister, the youngest in the state's history at the time.

G. K. Moopanar forms Tamil Maanila Congress

Opposing the Congress's alliance with the AIADMK, G. K. Moopanar led a breakaway to form the Tamil Maanila Congress.

Jain Commission interim report on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination

Criticism of the DMK over the LTTE in the Jain Commission's interim report prompted Congress to demand the party's exit, bringing down the Gujral government.

C. Subramaniam awarded the Bharat Ratna

Former Union minister C. Subramaniam, a Congress leader from Tamil Nadu who ushered in the Green Revolution, was awarded the Bharat Ratna.

Supreme Court verdict in Rajiv Gandhi assassination case

The Supreme Court upheld the convictions of seven accused in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case and acquitted the other 19 sentenced by a TADA court.

DMK-led alliance wins all 39 Lok Sabha seats

The DMK-led Democratic Progressive Alliance with the Congress and Left won every Lok Sabha seat in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry; the AIADMK-BJP alliance won none.

DMK forms a minority government

M. Karunanidhi became Chief Minister for the fifth time, heading a DMK government that depended on outside support from the Congress.

DMK-Congress alliance wins 27 of 39 Lok Sabha seats

Against expectations, the DMK, Congress and VCK won 27 of Tamil Nadu's 39 Lok Sabha seats, helping the UPA return to power.

TVK wins most seats in 2026; Vijay becomes Chief Minister

In its first election the TVK became the largest party with 108 seats, and C. Joseph Vijay was sworn in as Chief Minister with the support of allies.