L. Krishnaswami Bharathi
{{Short description|Indian freedom fighter, politician (1904–1999)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = L. Krishnaswami Bharathi
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1904|07|26}}
| birth_place = Tinnevelly, Tamil Nadu, British India
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1999|10|31|1904|07|26}}
| death_place = Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| nationality = Indian
| party = Indian National Congress
| otherparty =
| spouse = Lakshmi Bharathi
| children = K. Lakshmi Kanthan Bharathi
| occupation = Advocate, Politician
| office1 = Member of the Constituent Assembly of India
| term_start1 = 1946
| term_end1 = 1950
| constituency1 = Madras State
| office2 = Member of the Provisional Parliament of India
| term_start2 = 1950
| term_end2 = 1952
| constituency2 = Madras State
| office3 = Member of the Madras Legislative Assembly
| term_start3 = 1937
| term_end3 = 1943
| constituency3 =
}}
L. Krishnaswami Bharathi (26 July 1904 {{En dash}} 31 October 1999) was an Indian freedom fighter, politician and parliamentarian from Tamil Nadu who served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India from 1946 to 1950, representing the erstwhile Madras State. He became a member of the Provisional Parliament from 1950 to 1952, again representing the same region.{{cite web |title=L. Krishnaswami Bharathi (1904-1999) |url=https://www.constitutionofindia.net/members/l-krishnaswami-bharathi/ |website=Constitutionofindia.net}} He was a Congress leader and advocate of Gandhian values who contributed to the official language issue in the Constituent Assembly.{{cite web |title=Obituary speech at Parliament |url=https://eparlib.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/717741/1/6683.pdf |publisher=Parliament Digital Library}}
Biography
He was born on 26 July 1904 in Tinnevelly, Tamil Nadu. He received his education at Hindu College, Tinnevelly, and Presidency College, Madras. Bharathi then pursued law at both Trivandrum Law College and Madras Law College, qualifying as an advocate at the Madras High Court in 1928. He was an advocate by profession.{{fact|date=September 2024}}
Bharathi joined the Indian National Congress in 1930 and participated in the Indian independence movement. He was imprisoned for his involvement in the Satyagraha movements of 1932 and 1940. He was elected to the Madras Legislative Assembly in 1937.
He participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement alongside his wife and was sentenced to six months of rigorous imprisonment.{{cite news |title=Language Issues in the Constituent Assembly |url=https://modernrationalist.com/language-issues-in-the-constituent-assembly/ |publisher=The Modern Rationalist |date=10 February 2020}}
Bharathi became part of the Constituent Assembly of India representing Madras on a Congress Party ticket. In 1937, he left the Congress party to participate in the anti-Hindi agitation as a protest against making Hindi compulsory in schools.{{cite news |last1=Venkatachalapathy |first1=A R |title=When the South rose against Hindi |url=https://www.rediff.com/news/special/when-the-south-rose-against-hindi/20190614.htm |work=Rediff.com |date=14 June 2019}}
His contributions included interventions in debates on provincial languages and the principles of Gandhism. He participated in the All-India Language Expert Conference during 1949-50 and played a key role in translating the Constitution of India into Tamil language in 1951.
He held positions on the Road Traffic Board and Debt Conciliation Board for the Government of Madras.
Personal life
He was married to Lakshmi Bharathi, who was also an independence activist who participated in several protests, including the Non-Cooperation Movement, and served time in jail. His son, K. Lakshmi Kanthan Bharathi, was also a freedom fighter and later served as a bureaucrat until his retirement.{{cite news |last1=Saravanan |first1=T. |title=The staircase to freedom |url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/the-staircase-to-freedom/article2738371.ece |newspaper=The Hindu |date=22 December 2011}}
Death
References
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bharathi, L. Krishnaswami}}
Category:Indian independence activists
Category:Tamil Nadu politicians