Associates in Armed Revolution
Shyamji Krishnavarma (1857-1930)
Shyamji Krishnavarma (not Shyamji Krishna Varma; his surname was Bhansali) was born on 04 October 1857 at Mandavi (Kathiavad- in Gujarat). He lost both parents by the age of 10 years. His relatives helped him to come to Mumbai for High School studies. He learnt Sanskrit in a traditional Pathshala. In 1875, he married Bhanumati, daughter of Seth Chhabildas Lallubhai (famous for Chhabildas High Schools in Mumbai). In 1876, Prof Monier Williams (who became famous for his Sanskrit-English dictionary) visited India. He was looking for an assistant who was good in Sanskrit as well as in English. Shyamji was such a man. Shyamji organised a series of lectures in Sanskrit on behalf of Arya Samaj. Notable persons of the time like Kunte, Krishnashastri Chiplunkar, Justice Ranade and Gopalrao Deshmukh were impressed by Shyamji's scholarship. But things did not work out fast enough. Prof Williams went back to Oxford.
Shyamji borrowed money from his father-in-law and came to England in March 1879. Prof. Monier Williams said that he had not promised any help. Shyamji then registered with Balliol College, Oxford and obtained B.A degree in 1883. When Prof Williams realised the potential of Shyamji, he wrote a letter of recommendation to Sir Richard Temple, the Governor of Bombay province who in turn, persuaded Maharaja of Kutch to offer a scholarship of 100 pounds/ year to Shyamji. In 1881, Shyamji read a paper at the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. He emphasized that the art of writing was known in Vedic times. As a result of presenting this paper, he was elected a Member of the society.
Marquis of Harlington, the then Secretary of State for India sent Shyamji as India's representative for the fifth Oriental Congress in Berlin. Shyamji emphasized that Sanskrit was a living language. In 1883, Shyamji was sent as India’s representative to the Oriental Congress, in London by the Earl of Kimberley, the then Secretary of State for India. Shyamji joined the Empire Club which had among its members former governors, governor-generals and Army Generals. He became well known to Prof Max Mueller, Dadabhai Naoroji and former Governor General, Lord Northbrook. In 1884, Shyamji became a Barrister from the Inner Temple and returned to India in January 1885. From 1885-88, he served as Dewan (minister) of Ratlam state (salary of Rs. 700 per month plus cash of Rs. 32,000 at the end of service). From 1888-1892, he practiced as a Barrister at Ajmer. From 1892-95, Shyamji was Dewan of Udaipur (salary of Rs.1000 per month). Thereafter, from 1895-96, he served as Dewan of Junagadh state with a salary of Rs.1500 per month, when things started to go wrong. Shyamji had done a favour to an Englishman named Meconoki whom he knew in London. Shyamji used his influence and offered a suitable post to Meconoki. But he conspired against Shyamji and as the result Shyamji was dismissed from the position of Dewan of Junagadh. Shyamji was furious and fought for justice. But as soon as it was known that his fight concerned an Englishman, all the other Englishmen closed ranks and refused to listen. He appealed right up to the Secretary of State for India, but to no avail. After Shyamji’s dismissal from Junagad, Maharana of Udaipur wanted him to come back as his Dewan. But Sir Curzon Wyllie who was Governor General's Agent in Rajputana refused permission. He said that Shyamji had been declared unfit to hold the office of Dewan by the British Resident at Junagadh. He cannot be appointed as Divan of Udaipur, until that Resident clears the name of Shyamji. As the British Resident himself was involved in the conspiracy to remove Shyamji, there was no chance that he would change his mind. Further details are obscure, but it seems that he did become Dewan of Udaipur.
Shyamji had burnt his fingers. He realized what the British justice meant in practice. He sought help of Tilak. However, in 1897 the two British officers Rand and Lt Ayerst, were shot dead by Chapekar brothers, for insults and humiliations suffered by the people of Pune during the recent outbreak of plague. Shyamji thought that if Tilak's house was searched by the police, they would find his letters and harass him too. He, therefore, hurriedly resigned as Dewan of Udaipur, quietly left India and came to London and purchased a house on 60, Muswell Hill Road.
On 18 February 1905, Shyamji founded Indian Home Rule Society. Indian members of the British Committee of the Congress Party were becoming disaffected with the British members of the committee. They were attracted to Shyamji's society. Among its members we find - Barrister Rana, Barrister Parekh, Dr C M Muthu (he looked after Savarkar in Brighton ), Mukundrao Jaykar, Suhrawardy and Godrej (he helped Savarkar and Cama in Paris).
Shyamji also started his monthly magazine the Indian Sociologist. It was proscribed in Britain four years later. His monthly ran from January 1905 to December 1914.
In 1905, Shyamji purchased a house on 65, Cromwell Avenue, London N6 to be used as the students' hostel. This was inaugurated as INDIA HOUSE by My Hyndman, a Scottish Socialist on 1 July 1905. Dadabhai Naoroji, Lala Lajpat Rai, Madame Cama, Mr Squelsh of the Justice paper and Mr Sweeny of the Positivist Society were present at the ceremony. (The paper Justice ran from 19 January 1884 to 22 January 1925, it was renamed Social Democrat and ran from February 1925 to December 1933. The Government of India banned the paper Justice in 1910).
In 1905, Tilak’s Kesari carried an editorial about Shyamji’s activities in London including his starting of the students’ hostel ‘India House’. In Pune, Savarkar read about Shyamji's activities in Tilak's paper Kesari. He also came across an issue of Shyamji's monthly the Indian Sociologist, which contained information about scholarships being offered by Shyamji. On the 9th, Savarkar applied for the Shivaji scholarship. Tilak gave him a reference and also assured that Savarkar had no intention of seeking government employment.
On 05 May 1906, a meeting to condemn the police action at a meeting in Barisal (Bengal, now in Bangladesh) to protest the partition of Bengal was held at Shyamji’s home by the Indian Home Rule Society. At this meeting, Vitthalbhai Patel (elder brother of Sardar Patel ) and Bhai Paramanand were present. Dadabhai Naoroji and Gokhale were invited but did not attend.
In May 1907, Shyamji left London for Paris and carried out his propaganda from there. His address was 10 Avenue Ingress, Pasey, Paris. On 01 May 1909, benchers of the Inner Temple struck Shyamji off the register of Barristers.
In 1903, Shyamji had endowed a sum of 1,000 pounds to the Oxford University in memory of philosopher Herbert Spencer who died in that year. This was returned to him in July 1909. The once venerated Sanskrit scholar had suddenly become a persona non grata because now he was seeking independence for India.
Shyamji died in exile in Switzerland on 31 May 1930. His wife Bhanumati donated Shyamji's collection of Sanskrit books to the Indian Culture Institute of Sarborne University of Paris. She also donated 10,000 Swiss Francs to Geneva University and 10,000 Swiss Francs to a local hospital in memory of Shyamji. Shyamji’s wife Bhanumati also died Switzerland on 22 August 1933. They were both cremated at St George Cemetery, Geneva. They had no children and like many Indian freedom fighters they never saw their beloved motherland again.
* In August 2003, Narendra Modi, then Chief minister of Gujarat, took their ashes from Geneva to Mandavi, the birth place of Shyamji. On 15 August 2004, due to the efforts of Hemany Padhya of Milton Keynes, a plaque was placed on his house in London.