|
Shri Varahagiri Venkata
Giri was born on August 10, 1894 and died on June 23,
1980.
hri Varahagiri Venkata Giri was born on 10 August, 1894
at Berhampore in Ganjam district at that time in the
Madras Presidency and now in Orissa. He came of a rather
well-off Brahmin family. His father Shri V.V. Jogaiah
Pantulu was a prosperous lawyer at Berhampore and the
leader of the local Bar. He also took a prominent part
in the nationalist movement. In the twenties he joined
the Swarajya Party founded by Pandit Motilal Nehru and
Chittaranjan Das and was a member of the Central
Legislative Assembly from 1927 to 1930. He was also
elected to the Madras Legislative Council after the
introduction of the Act of 1935. Jogaiah was also
interested in the Bengal Nagpur Railway Workers' Union.
The example of his father and the family atmosphere
naturally influenced the mind and career of V.V. Giri.
Shri V.V. Giri was married at an early age. The name of
his wife is Saraswati Bai.
After his early education in his home-town Giri went to
Ireland and joined the University of Dublin for higher
studies. It was here that he came under the spell of the
freedom struggle in Ireland and drew his inspiration
from De Valera. He became associated with the Sinn Fein
Movement and came in close contact with De Valera,
Collins, Pearee, Desmond Fitzgerald, MacNeil, Connolly
and others. Giri was called to the Bar during World War
I and returned to India in 1916.
Giri returned to India not only as a militant
nationalist but deeply concerned about the well-being of
the working people. The Irish Trade Union Movement had
impressed him a good deal and when he returned to India
he started taking a keen interest in the labour
movement. Giri started practice in his home-town
Berhampore but he also took an active part in the
nationalist movement. He joined the Home Rule League and
also the Indian National Congress. When Gandhi launched
his Non-Cooperation Movement, Giri gave up his lucrative
practice at the Bar and plunged himself into the
movement. He was arrested and suffered imprisonment for
a short period.
As early as 1922 he identified himself closely with the
organization of the working classes and became a trusted
lieutenant of N.M. Joshi. From that time onwards his
main sphere of work was the Trade Union movement. To
this day he is proud above all else of being a trade
unionist. His identity and deep affinity with the
working people is the main-spring of his strength. In
1923 he became one of the founders of the All India
Railwaymen's Federation. He was twice elected President
of the Trade Union Congress, in 1926 and 1942. As a
leading trade unionist he attended many international
gatherings. In 1927 he attended the International Labour
Conference at Geneva. He also attended the Trade Union
Congress at Geneva. In 1931-1932 he attended the Second
Round Table Conference in London as the Workers'
Representative.
During the Civil Disobedience Movement in the early
thirties Giri, as a prominent labour leader, did much to
organize trade unions in support of the nationalist
movement. He was a member of the Indian Legislative
Assembly from 1934 to 1937. In a house dominated by
stalwarts like Satyamurty, Bhulabhai Desai, Jinnah,
Govind Ballabh Pant, Madan Mohan Malaviya, Asaf Ali and
others, Giri soon made his mark as a forceful speaker,
specially on labour questions.
In the 1936 General Election in Madras, after the
introduction of the Act of 1935, Giri was put up as the
Congress candidate in Bobbili against the Raja of
Bobbili, the most powerful political personality in the
Madras Presidency. The Raja of Bobbili was the leader of
the Justice Party and the Chief Minister of the
Province; and the constituency was the traditional
family strong-hold. The contest was like David tackling
Goliath. In this contest between a feudal leader and a
popular leader, the victory of the people's man heralded
a decisive turning of the political tide. After the
election when C. Rajagopalachari formed the Congress
Ministry in Madras in 1937, V.V. Giri was naturally
taken into the Cabinet and given the portfolio of Labour.
Again after the General Election of 1946 in Madras Giri
was taken into the Cabinet formed by T. Prakasam and
given the portfolio of Labour. Later Giri was appointed
India's High Commissioner in Ceylon.
Before long he returned to his favourite forum, the
lelgislature. He was a member of the Lok Sabha from 1952
to 1957. From 1952 to 1954 he was a member of the Union
Cabinet and was given the portfolio of Labour. When an
issue arose that involved the interest of labour, Giri
resigned to uphold his cherished principles. Eventually,
the Government had to come round to his viewpoint.
After 1957 began a long spell of gubernatorial
assignments for Giri. Successively he served as Governor
of Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Mysore. He won friends
everywhere, initiated new activities and became a mentor
for the younger generation. It was during these years
that he imparted new depth and dimension to social work
as the President of the Indian Conference of Social
Work, to which office he was elected in 1958.
In 1967, during the period of turmoil, he was invited to
be the Vice-President. Fate willed that Dr. Zakir
Hussain should not complete his term as the President.
On his death on 3 May, 1969, V.V. Giri had to officiate
as the President. Giri was so clear about his manifest
destiny that without bothering about party support he
offered himself as a candidate for the Presidential
election, confident of popular approval. He was elected
(1969) the fourth President of the Republic with the
acclaim of the people. With him the arena of the
election shifted from the close preserve of politicians
to the broad wishes of the people.
|
