Radhabai Subbarayan
{{short description|Indian politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2021}}
Kailash Radhabai Subbarayan, nee Kudmul (22 April 1891 - 1960) was an Indian politician, women's rights activist and social reformer. She was the wife of Indian politician P. Subbarayan and mother of Mohan Kumaramangalam, P. P. Kumaramangalam and Parvathi Krishnan.
Early life and education
Radhabai Kudmul was born to Rao Sahib Kudmul Ranga Rao of Mangalore.{{cite book|title=The Who's who in Madras: A pictorial who's who of distinguished personages, princes, zemindars and noblemen in the Madras Presidency|page=83|publisher=Pearl Press|year=1937}} She belonged to the Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmin community.{{cite journal|journal=Kanara Saraswat|year=2004|volume=85|issue=11|page=5|title=All India Chitrapur Defence Souvenir Fund Souvenir and Directory|url=http://www.kanarasaraswat.org/Magazine/MagNov04/MagNov04.pdf|access-date=8 November 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723102622/http://www.kanarasaraswat.org/Magazine/MagNov04/MagNov04.pdf|archive-date=23 July 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} She had her schooling in Mangalore and graduated from Presidency College, Madras. Widowed at an early age, in 1912, Radhabai married P. Subbarayan, zamindar of Kumaramangalam. The couple had three sons and one daughter. She did her post graduation from Somerville College, Oxford.{{cite book|title=Somerville for women: an Oxford college, 1879-1993|page=118|author=Pauline Adams|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1996|id= |isbn=978-0199201792}}
Public life
Radhabai was an elected member of the senate of the Madras University. She also served as a member of the All India Women's Conference. In the Round Table Conference of 1930, she and Jahanara Shahnawaz were the only two active members of women's organisations nominated to the conference; they argued unsuccessfully for a 5 per cent reservation for women in the legislatures.{{cite book|author=Partha S. Ghosh|title=The Politics of Personal Law in South Asia: Identity, Nationalism and the Uniform Civil Code|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lwPgCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA234|date=23 May 2012|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-70512-0|pages=234–}} She also participated in the Second Round Table Conference.{{cite book|title=Gendered citizenship: historical and conceptual explorations|page=139|publisher=Orient Blackswan|author=Anupama Roy|year=2005|id= |isbn=978-8125027973}} The Lothian Committee was appointed, with Radhabai being a part of it, to gauge public opinion over reservations.{{cite book|title=Gendered citizenship: historical and conceptual explorations|page=140|publisher=Orient Blackswan|author=Anupama Roy|year=2005|id= |isbn=978-8125027973}}
In 1937, Radhabai wanted to contest a general seat as a candidate of the Indian National Congress.{{cite book|title=Gandhi, women, and the National Movement, 1920-47|page=179|author=Anup Taneja|publisher=Har Anand Publications|id= |isbn=978-8124110768|year=2005}} But the Chairman of the Madras Provincial Reception Committee refused to support her. When Subbarayan questioned C. Rajagopalachari about this, he replied:
{{blockquote|I don't believe that (the) advance type of woman candidates want political favours just because they are women.{{cite book|title=Gandhi, women, and the National Movement, 1920-47|page=180|author=Anup Taneja|publisher=Har Anand Publications|id= |isbn=978-8124110768|year=2005}}|author=|title=|source=}}
However, Radhabai was elected unopposed to the Council of States from a general constituency in 1938 and became the first woman member of the Council of States.{{cite book|title=The position of women|author=Lakshmi N. Menon|page=28|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1944|author-link=Lakshmi N. Menon}}
Notes
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Category:Presidency College, Chennai alumni
Category:Alumni of Somerville College, Oxford
Category:Politicians from Mangalore
Category:Indian social reformers
Category:Kumaramangalam family
Category:Academic staff of the University of Madras
Category:Women in Karnataka politics
Category:Indian women's rights activists
Category:Indian women activists
Category:20th-century Indian politicians