Everywhere, many statues have been a source of discontent. The world watched as soon after the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1991, statues of heroes of the old regime were pulled down in some parts of the constituent-states of the erstwhile USSR. Similarly, former President Saddam Hussein’s men were toppled in Iraq after the West Asian country’s conquest by US and allied forces in 2003 or Bangladesh’s first President Sheikh Mujibur Rahman or Syria’s former President Hafez al-Assad were toppled in 2024.
In India, around the time of independence, a trend took hold among those who advocated the removal of statues or monuments they saw as disgusting relics of the British past. However, what is not much discussed is that even about 100 years ago in Madras (Chennai) – when the British Raj was flourishing – an intense movement was seen to remove the statue of James George Smith Neill, a British military officer.
Located at what is now called Spencer Junction – the intersection of Mount Road (now Anna Salai) and Binny Road, this statue served as an important landmark of Madras for more than 75 years in the late 1990s.th century CE and early part of 20th century BC
Who was James George Smith Neal?
During the Great Rebellion of 1857, Neel, who was attached to the Madras Fusiliers, played a role in brutally suppressing the rebels but died while in service. However, to Indians, he was “the butcher of Allahabad (now known as Prayagraj)”. A bronze statue made in Scotland was installed in his memory in August 1861, the cost of which (₹18,953) was mostly borne by the British.
For almost 55 years, the city of Madras did not protest “the presence of the Nile”. But, in the late 1920s, after a period of inertia, patriotic fervor was on the rise. Nevertheless, the nationalists were divided into two camps: the Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi, and the Swarajists adopting a contradictory approach, with the former boycotting the legislature and the latter siding with the remaining members. The younger generation of people in India, like their counterparts in many other countries, were increasingly coming under the influence of Karl Marx. The demand for complete independence from British rule was gaining momentum.
In response to the persistent refusal of the then Secretary of State for India, Lord Birkenhead, to form an all-white commission led by John Simon to propose constitutional changes in India and the inability of Indians to formulate a concrete constitutional plan, the Congress at its Chennai session in December 1927 decided to draft a ‘Swaraj’ Constitution. The result of this move was the Nehru Report which was originally written by Motilal Nehru after holding several meetings with other parties.
beginning of protest
It was in this background that the movement against Neel’s statue started in August 1927. On the morning of August 10, 1927, two young men from Madurai – Mohammed Saliyah and Subbarayulu Naidu – were dressed. khadi And wearing a Gandhi cap, saw the statue of Neel, at Spencer Junction, with a dangling sword. Both were members of the Tamil Nadu Volunteer Corps. As stated in a report of how he was “reminded” of Neill’s action (in 1857) The Hindu The next day, the two, armed with an axe, a chisel and a ladder, “determined to cut down with the sword and dismember the statue.”
A few days later, in Madurai, the Corps held a meeting under the chairmanship of Srinivasavarada Iyengar and “a large gathering” assembled, as this newspaper reported on August 16, 1927. Iyengar sought people’s support and sympathy for the “Satyagraha Movement”, which volunteers expected to begin shortly. Gradually the matter started gaining momentum.
At the Madras Corporation Council meeting on 17 August, M. Singaravelu Chettiar, from the fishermen community, wanted to raise the matter but was not allowed. Chettiar became known as “the first communist in South India” because he presided over the first conference of communists in Kanpur in 1925. When K. According to the biographies written on Chettiar by Murugesan and CS Subramaniam, when two members of the Satyagraha Committee, Angachi Ammal and Lokaiah Naidu, were arrested for their agitation, it was Chettiar who appeared on their behalf in the court and defended them.
Gandhiji’s opinion
Meanwhile, 20 representatives of the Satyagraha panel twice met Mahatma Gandhi, who was in Chennai in September 1927, and sought his support. On 10th September, The Hindu Published a detailed report with the comment “With the consent of Mahatma Gandhi”. The members had a free-flowing discussion and Gandhi clearly told them not to expect public organizations, including the Congress, to guide them. He explained to them why the organization would not be able to support them.
Describing the movement as “sectional”, he clarified that he did not mean it to be communal, Gandhi, however, said, “If the Congress is called upon to help such movements, it will reduce a regrettable figure. The Congress has a position and reputation to lose. Therefore, young people, it is better for you not to expect the Congress or other public bodies to immediately lend their support to your movement.” Also, he told the youth that he would support them “as long as I find you on the straight path.”
Mahatma Gandhi. file | Photo Credit: Getty Images
In the fourth week of the month, Chettiar had again raised the issue of removing the statue at the Madras Corporation Council meeting and wanted the local body to adopt a resolution, which was “simply a request to the government to remove the statue from the place,” he said. The Hindu On 24 September 1927.
Chettiar told the council that the issue was “attracting attention from all over India and it is creating a major crisis in the city”. This time too, Mr. Narayanaswami Chetty, who was the Chairman of the Corporation (as the post of Mayor was then called) did not allow the proposal to be brought. One of the issues raised in the public discussion was that the statue was an “obstruction” to traffic.
In November that year, when a motion on the same matter failed in the Legislative Council, Gandhi said that “the innocent motion demanding the removal of the offending statue was lost by an overwhelming majority.” Pointing out that almost all the Indian members, “except the stalwarts,” were against the resolution, he said that “this vote and debate are a fresh demonstration of the fact that Swaraj has been delayed not so much because of the stubbornness of the English rulers as because of their refusal to recognize our situation and work for it,” he said. The Hindu On November 7, 1927.
police protection
As the years passed, the issue of the statue did not disappear. Whenever public protests were organized against the statue, authorities deployed police to protect it. In May 1937, the Madras Corporation informed the British Government about shifting the statue from Mount Road. This was disclosed by Mayor K. Sriramulu Naidu, at a council meeting on July 6, 1937, along with veteran Congress leader and councillor, S. Did this in response to a question from Satyamurthy.
eviction
On 14 July, the Congress regime led by C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji or CR) took charge. Four months later the official announcement came that “in deference to the public sentiments expressed from time to time,” the statue of Neel was ordered to be removed from the present site and the statue would be preserved in the Government Museum (in Egmore), as reported The Hindu On 15 November 1937.
C. Rajagopalachari. file | Photo Courtesy: The Hindu Archives
On the night of 21 November, the removal of the statue was carried out by several workers under the supervision of a Public Works Department official. The entire operation took about five hours to complete. The statue was placed on a four-wheel cart and taken to the museum, reaching it by 3 a.m.,” this newspaper said on November 22, 1937.
The matter reached the British Parliament
The issue of removing the statue also came up for discussion in the British Parliament and suggestions came from the citizens of the western country that the statue should be sent to London. Reacting to the development, Rajaji told reporters during his visit to Visakhapatnam on December 3 why his government wanted to retain the statue and not put it on public display.
He clarified that there was “no contradiction” in his government’s attitude when they did not intend for it to be “a perpetual course of irritation” but rather claimed to retain it and intended to preserve it with care. He further stated that “The statue which is ours must be preserved in Madras. We have become more responsible than ever for its maintenance and cannot agree to send the statue anywhere because then it would become a permanent center of misrepresentation of our view in this matter.”
Where is the statue now?
Ten days later the government announced that the statue would be placed in the verandah adjacent to the museum’s weapons gallery. A report published by this newspaper on 24 November 1940 stated that the statue “is located in the archaeological section of the Museum, between the Connemara Library and the Museum Theatre.”
This statue, which once aroused strong public sentiments, has remained a “constant occupant” in a small space in the museum for almost 90 years.
