J. Tyagaraja

{{Infobox officeholder

|honorific-prefix = Honourable

|name = J. Tyagaraja

|native_name =

|native_name_lang =

|honorific-suffix = MSC

|image =

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|office1 = Member of the State Council of Ceylon

|constituency1 = Mannar-Mullaitivu

|term_start1 = 1944

|term_end1 = 1947

|predecessor1 = J. I. Gnanamuttu

|successor1 =

|birth_date = {{Birth date|1895|10|18|df=yes}}

|birth_place =

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|nationality =

|party = United National Party

|otherparty =

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|alma_mater = Christ's College, Cambridge

|occupation = Lawyer

|profession =

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|footnotes =

|blank1 = Ethnicity

|data1 = Ceylon Tamil

}}

Jaganathan Tyagaraja (born 18 October 1895) was a Ceylon Tamil barrister, politician and member of the State Council of Ceylon.

Tyagaraja was born on 18 October 1895.{{cite book |last=Arumugam |first=S. |title=Dictionary of Biography of the Tamils of Ceylon |url=http://noolaham.net/project/19/1810/1810.pdf |year=1997 |page=236 |author-link=S. Arumugam}} He was the son of Namasivayam Tyagaraja, a wealthy landed proprietor from Colombo, the capital of Ceylon. Tyagaraja was educated at Royal College, Colombo. After school he joined Christ's College, Cambridge, graduating with LLB and master's degrees. He was subsequently called to the bar.

Tyagaraja tried unsuccessfully to obtain a seat on the Legislative Council of Ceylon following the death of P. Ramanathan. He abided by the Jaffna Youth Congress' call to boycott the 1931 State Council election.{{cite book |last1=Welhengama |first1=Gnanapala |last2=Pillay |first2=Nirmala |title=The Rise of Tamil Separatism in Sri Lanka: From Communalism to Secession |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |location=Abingdon, U.K. |isbn=978-0-415-85486-3 |page=143 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Aob8AgAAQBAJ}} The following year most of the Tamil politicians who had boycotted the election, including Tyagaraja, condemned the boycott.{{cite book |last1=Welhengama |first1=Gnanapala |last2=Pillay |first2=Nirmala |title=The Rise of Tamil Separatism in Sri Lanka: From Communalism to Secession |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |location=Abingdon, U.K. |isbn=978-0-415-85486-3 |page=146 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Aob8AgAAQBAJ}}

Tyagaraja contested the 1944 State Council by-election as a candidate in Mannar-Mullaitivu and was elected to the State Council of Ceylon.{{cite book |last1=Goonetilleke |first1=T. V. |title=Members of the Legislatures of Ceylon: 1931-1972 |date=1972 |publisher=Library of the National State Assembly |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka |page=163 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XkkFAAAAMAAJ}}{{cite book |last1=Rajasingham |first1=K. T. |title=Sri Lanka: The Untold Story |date=29 September 2001 |publisher=Asia Times |location=Hong Kong |url=http://www.atimes.com/ind-pak/CI29Df03.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011224000734/http://www.atimes.com/ind-pak/CI29Df03.html |archive-date=24 December 2001 |url-status=unfit |chapter=Chapter 8: Pan Sinhalese board of ministers - A Sinhalese ploy}} Tyagaraja supported G. G. Ponnambalam's call for balanced representation in the Ceylonese legislature but nevertheless voted for self-government as recommended by the Soulbury Commission.{{cite book |last1=Wilson |first1=A. Jeyaratnam |title=S. J. V. Chelvanayakam and the Crisis of Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism, 1947–1977: A Political Biography |date=1994 |location=London, UK |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. |isbn=1-85065-130-2 |page=14 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_2jvhndxPzQC |author-link=A. Jeyaratnam Wilson}}

Tyagaraja contested the 1947 parliamentary election as a United National Party candidate in Mannar but was defeated by C. Sittampalam.{{cite web |title=Result of Parliamentary General Election 1947 |url=https://elections.gov.lk/web/wp-content/uploads/election-results/parliamentary-elections/general-election-1947.pdf |publisher=Election Commission of Sri Lanka |access-date=14 June 2020 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka |page=9}} His defeat has been attributed to his support for the Soulbury Constitution.{{cite book |last1=Wilson |first1=A. Jeyaratnam |title=S. J. V. Chelvanayakam and the Crisis of Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism, 1947–1977: A Political Biography |date=1994 |location=London, UK |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. |isbn=1-85065-130-2 |page=15 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_2jvhndxPzQC |author-link=A. Jeyaratnam Wilson}}

Tyagaraja played a key role in the establishment of the Central Bank of Ceylon and was an appointed member of its monetary board for 21 years (1950–71).{{cite news |last1=Ranatunga |first1=D. C. |title=Banknote books replace coins Currency crisis deepens |url=http://www.ft.lk/ft-lite/banknote-books-replace-coins-currency-crisis-deepens/6-261304 |access-date=14 June 2020 |work=Daily FT |date=1 March 2014 |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka}}{{cite book |title=1950 - 1975 Commemorative Volume |date=1975 |publisher=Central Bank of Sri Lanka |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka |page=8 |url=https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/sites/default/files/cbslweb_documents/publications/otherpub/25th_anniversary_central_bank_of_ceylon.pdf}}{{cite book |title=1950 - 1975 Commemorative Volume |date=1975 |publisher=Central Bank of Sri Lanka |location=Colombo, Sri Lanka |page=10 |url=https://www.cbsl.gov.lk/sites/default/files/cbslweb_documents/publications/otherpub/25th_anniversary_central_bank_of_ceylon.pdf}}