Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 1
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 1 Source: prekshaa]]
Sir Mirza Muhammad Ismail Saheb’s ancestors hailed from Persia. Persia is known as the land of famous poets like Firdausi [Abul-Qāsem Ferdowsi Tusi], Hafiz [Khwāja Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī], Omar Khayyam [Ghiyāth al-Dīn Abū al-Fatḥ ’Umar ibn Ibrāhīm al-Nīsābūrī al-Khayyāmī], Sadi [Abū-Muhammad Muslih al-Dīn bin Abdallāh Shīrāzī]. Persian literature and culture had come to Mirza as a family trait. His ancestors had come to India from Persia as traders.
Ali Askar
Mirza Ismail’s grandfather was Ali Askar Saheb. A street in Bangalore’s cantonment is named after him. He was a contemporary of the chief commissioner, Sir Mark Cubbon. Ali Askar was a horse trader, who imported horses from Arabia and other countries and sold them to the British army and to others. Just as the motor car is important to us today, for those living a hundred or a hundred and fifty years ago, horses were important. In the army, the horse was the most vital constituent.
Thus Ali Askar’s business flourished. He was also into money-lending. Whenever British officers wanted to transfer money they came to Ali Askar and so he was well acquainted with several of them.
Circa 1850, the Mahārāja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wodeyar III had to seek Ali Askar’s help. The British had taken up the reins of the administration of the Mysore state in 1831. The Mahārāja came up with an action plan to regain control of the administration. In this effort, he needed the support of a few British officers. At that time, Madras was the capital of the British-controlled provinces in South India. The Mahārāja felt that it would be useful to gain the friendship and trust of prominent British officers stationed in Madras. Ali Askar used to travel to Madras and Bombay frequently and he was a person who had benefited from the proximity to many British officers. And so, his assistance became essential to the Mahārāja. Ali Askar was entrusted with the responsibility of ferrying many secrets and classified letters to the officers and back. He took the responsibility and helped the Mahārāja achieve success. This resulted in a strong bond between the family of the Mysore Mahārāja and Ali Askar’s family.
Ali Askar Road
Once Sir Mark Cubbon asked Ali Askar, “There is a lot of space in Bangalore and hardly anyone is building anything. Why don’t you build a house for yourself here?”
Ali Askar replied, “If you give us some space, we shall build a home.”
“As much space as you feel is required, just mark it on the map. Take my word that I’ve already given it to you,” said Cubbon.
And thus, the two rows of houses on either side of Ali Askar road came into being. In addition to that, some houses were also built in Richmond Town. In the nearby ‘Arab Lines’ many of Ali Askar’s relatives have their houses.
So Mirza Ismail’s house in Bangalore is more than a century old!
Mirza’s father Aga Jan was an expert in horses and horse-riding. There was a strong friendship between Chamarajendra Wodeyar X and Aga Jan. They would go horse-riding together.
The friendship between Mirza Ismail and Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV is one that has spanned three generations.
For the early education of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV a new ‘Royal School’ was established. Children of some of the most prominent citizens of Mysore were chosen as its students. Mirza Saheb was one among them. Others in this clique included M S Ramachandra Rao, B Venkatasubba Rao, Lingopant Badami, and Tippu Sultan Ali Khan – all were classmates of the Mahārāja and more or less of the same age.
The friendship between the Mahārāja and Mirza Ismail started during their student days.
College Education
After completing his education at the Royal School, Mirza Ismail joined the Central College in Bangalore. Many of his classmates and contemporaries later became experts in various fields. One among them was N S Subba Rao who later became the Vice-Chancellor of Mysore University. The eye specialist Dr. B K Narayana Rao was another of his classmates.
In his FA^(^([1])) classes, Prof. B Venkatanaranappa and B Venkateshacharya taught physics, C M Vijayaraghavacharya taught chemistry, and V S Sambashiva Iyer taught geology. Mirza Ismail respected them all, fondly remembered them till the end, and whenever possible served them by helping them in issues that came within his powers as Dewan.
Mirza’s elective in BA was geology. He was an intensely devoted student to V S Sambashiva Iyer. Iyer was a patriot and a proponent of the Swadeshi lifestyle. After he retired from his teaching job, Mirza encouraged him to establish an industry that would benefit from his expertise in geology. As a result, a factory manufacturing colors used to coat aluminium was established.
Employment
After completing his education, Mirza Ismail was appointed as a probationer and assigned to the police department.
Mirza apparently started his service in Kolar district. He gained experience under Narayana Rao of Saligrama, who was the Superintendent of Police and they remained friends till the end.
Mirza was in the police department only for a few months. Soon after, he was taken into the private office of the Mahārāja. From there, till he became the Dewan, he remained in the office serving the Mahārāja under various posts: as Assistant Private Secretary, Huzur Secretary, and Private Secretary.
Working in the private office of the Mahārāja for long years, Mirza gained something that no one else could have: the intimate knowledge of the various departments of the government worked. This was the main strength that served him well during his administration as the Dewan of Mysore. He had first-hand experience of the various departments, their working, the nature of the officers, their opinions, and their style of working.
During those days it was mandatory for Mahārāja to have a Secretary of European origin. The European Private Secretary represented the British government.
This is the first part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Footnotes
^(^([1]))First examination in Arts (FA).
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 2
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 2 Source: prekshaa]]
Huzūr Secretary
The Mahārāja didn’t find any use for the European secretary. But someone nominated by the British government was not to be left out. The Mahārāja wanted a secretary who would be knowledgeable in national and local affairs, gauge the pulse of the citizens, and give him important news in a timely manner. The Mahārāja didn’t want someone who would behave like an aristocrat who had descended from the heavens and spoke in a cavalier fashion. Thus he decided that there should also be a ‘Huzūr Secretary’ along with the European secretary and upon the Mahārāja’s orders, his erstwhile tutor Purna Raghavendra Rao was appointed. And once he became a councillor, Mirza Ismail was appointed as the Huzūr Secretary.
The responsibility of hearing/reading all documents, answering queries, and ensuring the timely clearances of all government requests and recommendations fell on Mirza’s shoulders. This relieved the then Private Secretary Sir Charles Todhunter from most of his work and he was able to spend his free time in activities that were dear to his heart, such as the association for the care of disabled animals, orphanages, pinjarāpol (old age shelter for animals), and so on. During the silver jubilee celebrations of the coronation of the Mahārāja, there was a special passage about humane treatment of animals in the Mahārāja’s official address to the citizens expressing his thoughts about the future; people thought Sir Todhunter was instrumental in adding that segment.
After Sir Todhunter’s term came to an end I had requested Mirza Ismail, who was by then the Dewan, not to extend his term or reappoint him, for there was no substantial reason to do so. He replied obscurely with a smile saying, “The Todhunter couple are elderly. Old people, you know. They are pious and honest. They will do something beneficial to the people. The kingdom also needs such people.”
Before going to Mirza Ismail’s achievements as the Dewan of Mysore, it is prudent to describe the fundamental rule he adhered to as a preface. Mirza used to repeatedly quote a few lines written by a Parsi poet. It goes like this:
You arrived here crying
while your kinsmen smiled
Depart from here smiling
while your kinsmen cry!
The meaning of this verse is evident. “It is possible to accomplish this only through your goodness.”
Do good, be good: this was what Mirza believed in.
What is ‘Good’?
But what does it mean to be good? What is good? Whatever the majority of the people demand, that is good – is one opinion.
What has been accepted by the world as good from time immemorial is good – is another opinion.
Mirza Ismail was not one to deny the opinions and aspirations of the citizens. “Their opinions are indeed valid. But the voices we hear in the political circles alone don’t constitute the voices of the citizens. The opinions and voices of the common people who remain outside political institutions carry more weight and hence must be given more value” – This was his opinion. We need not reinvent what is good for people. Food surplus, ample job opportunities, education, culture, a clean environment, scenic locales, flowers and fruits, clean clothes, good conduct, magnanimity – these are good for people. This has been accepted by all countries and all religions for a long time. There is no secret ingredient when it comes to what is good: it needs neither discussion nor debate. With constant and persistent effort, if the government can cultivate what has been accepted as good since ages, then it has served its purpose.
The Binny Mills Unrest
The Binny Mills problem started the same year in which Mirza became the Dewan of Mysore [i.e. 1926]. That year, the employees of Binny Mills went on strike. When all the efforts by the police to disperse them went in vain, with no other choice they opened fire. I remember there were a couple of deaths. And that’s when the trouble started. Later that year, during the Representative Assembly proceedings that took place in Mysore, naturally the unfortunate episode was tabled for discussion. Mirza Ismail was subjected to acerbic criticism by many people. Mirza handled the situation with utmost patience. I am aware that a few people told the Mahārāja that Mirza should have instead responded to his critics forcefully. On the contrary, there were others who told the Mahārāja with appreciation that Mirza was right in his conduct. As for the Mahārāja, he did not pay heed to these critics.
An event that happened during the same time period exemplifies the innate nature of the Era of Agitations.
During the Binny Mills unrest, the police discovered that there was a possibility of further unrest and agitation. The government thought it was prudent to exercise caution and nip these revolts in the bud and so it brought out an executive order forbidding all public gatherings for some time.
One day, I was sitting with one of my lawyer friends in his house. A friend of his, another lawyer, happened to visit him. That friend started a discussion on the curfew that was ordered by the city magistrate and expressed his displeasure, screaming on top of his voice. I tried to pacify him. “You say the government has acted impetuously. You might be right. But it’s not appropriate to violate it. Instead, the magistrate can be requested to take back the orders. The current city magistrate is a good person. He is just and people-friendly. If you are willing to go and request him, and if you want me to accompany you, I will also come. I am confident that he will cancel the orders.”
He disagreed and said, “Requesting the officers is not right. We should earn our rights through our strength. There should be awareness among the citizens. Agitations are instrumental in this!”
After hearing this I kept quiet. That proponent of agitations is still alive [c. 1971]. He has earned fame and has occupied various prominent positions. Even after all these episodes of unrest during that era, the people of Mysore did not feel the need for such agitations; that is true even now. These days, not only in Mysore but even across India, some people have made agitation their daily routine. And we all are experiencing the ramifications of that.
This is the second part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 3
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 3 Source: prekshaa]]
Sultanpet Riots
The second disturbance that occurred during Mirza’s reign as Dewan was related to the unfortunate event that occured on Arcot Srinivasacharlu Street. There was an old building which belonged to the municipality on that road. For some time it was used as an income tax office and an octroi depot. Later, a portion of Sultanpet’s S R Nanjundaiah School found refuge there. Facing that building was the house of Mohammad Abbas Khan Saheb. In the school premises, a stone-sculpted mūrti of Gaṇapati had been there for a long time. For some reason, it was shifted to another room. Vīrakesari and other newspapers published this news taking an indirect route by means of a satirical article. In a soliloquy, Gaṇapati lamented about his predicament in a dark room in this manner:
“Oh no! How can I end up in this lurch! I’m the Deity of knowledge, education, and so forth, but I’ve been made to suffer without pūja (worship), naivedya (offerings)… and I am languishing in this darkness!”
Many people also felt similarly. This resulted in bringing out the mūrti again and installing it in its original place by performing a pūja. Some people felt that installing the Gaṇapati there and worshipping it, right in front of Abbas Khan’s house led to discontentment among Muslims. Whatever might have been the reason, it is a fact that a huge crowd gathered there and there was a riot. People were thrashed and hurt. There were people discussing how bullets were fired and how there was a loss of lives.
When these riots took place, I wasn’t in Bangalore. I had been to Bagalkote to attend a journalists’ conference. I got the news when I was there. Mirza Ismail himself sent a telegram and informed me that the situation was under control. I also wired back a reply saying that the government should constitute an inquiry committee.
Differences
I could return to Bangalore only two or three days after the riots and by this time Bangalore was in an unprecedented pandemonium. The reconciliatory meeting that Mirza had arranged to sort out differences between Hindus and Muslims ended up escalating the situation. Accusations flew thick. The day I returned to Bangalore, some of my friends received me at the railway station and gave me their version in an inciting manner. Few more such groups came to meet me once I reached home. All were my close friends; they were not swayed by emotions, and they were epitomes of justice. In summary, they opined that Mirza was somehow inclined to hurl all the blame on the Hindus.
While this caused me surprise I didn’t find it improbable. I felt that it might have been the case and so I didn’t bother to meet Mirza. I did not meet him for another year and a half.
Three Groups
One of my close friends opined that it was a mistake on my part. He told me, “If you had gone and talked to Mirza upfront, he might not have been so adamant!” After all these years I feel that he was right. Mirza Ismail was not an adamant man. He would take others’ opinions in a friendly manner. If I had met him when the situation was tense and had explained the stance of the Hindus, the situation might not have taken a worse turn!
But whatever happened, happened. The citizens were divided not into two but three groups. There already are two groups: Hindus and Muslims. Among the Hindus, there was a further division: one for the government and one against. In the group supporting the government were K H Ramaiah, H C Dasappa, Nilagiri Sanjeevaiah, and others. In the opposition, were Sampige Venkatapatayya, ‘Vīrakesari’ Sitarama Shastri, Pamadi Subbarama Shetty, M P Somashekhara Rao, Nittur Srinivasa Rao, Tirumale Tatacharya Sharman and others. Probably by then, the National Congress had opened its branch in Mysore. K Chengalaraya Reddy had entered politics around that time (1928–29).
The situation remained tense for a long time with mutual animosity between the said factions. We, a group of around fifteen to twenty citizens, decided to observe the anniversary of the Sultanpet Riots and had printed and distributed pamphlets. This resulted in a huge crowd. The crowd was accused of snatching the headgear of the City Magistrate Narayanaswami Naidu and causing disturbance. Some of them were thus taken to custody and were investigated by the police. Among them were ‘Vīrakesari’ Sitarama Shastri and Ti. Ta. Sharman if I remember right. Perhaps even P R Ramaiah was among them. Jenab Taj Peeran Saheb was the District Magistrate then. The court proceedings lead to a lot of unintended humour, not fit to be written about and published. The then superintendent of police, Mariappa had also become a butt of ridicule. He was the brother-in-law of K H Ramaiah. Except for his terrifying moustache, there was nothing frightening about him. A nice person and an honest officer. His moustache was pitch black with curved tips that were sharp like thorns. That had earned him the moniker Mīse (Mustachioed) Mariyappa.
Nariman Riots
After a year or two, there was another riot. It can be called the ‘Nariman Riot.’ Nariman, who hailed from Bombay, was a Parsi activist. There is a street named after him in that city. God knows what erudition or influence he might have had! It seems like he had the power to make provocative speeches and rile up the people.
As far as I can remember, Nariman’s visit to Bangalore was under the pretext of the National Flag Agitation. When Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru visited Bangalore, the local congress members had installed a huge pole in the quadrangle of the Dharmāmbudhi Lake, which is in front of the city railway station, and hoisted the congress flag. The government had it removed. This is disparaging to the national flag – thus a rumour was floated. This was the flimsy reason that Nariman was probably waiting for. Riots followed and the government brought in the military and made them do rounds. The people living in the eastern parts of the city spread rāgi all across the street to cause the horses to slip. The police used tear gas to disperse people and made people cry; in response, the agitators distributed onions. Finally armed vehicles were made to do rounds all over the city to restrain the unruly elements. That is how the riots went on.
I am unfamiliar with the details of this agitation. It was first carried out by Prajā-pakṣa (Peoples’ Party), which metamorphosed into Prajā-samyukta-pakṣa (Peoples’ United Party) and then into Prajā-mitra-maṇḍali (Citizens’ Friends Forum). Further, these historical details aren’t particularly relevant for the current discussion. In the initial days, the meetings used to be held in the Fort area in the premises of institutions such as the Sanskrit College, Fort High School, and Apex Bank. Then it shifted to the Kāryaraṅga Bannappa Park. In those places, many people have heard the valorous speeches delivered by K T Bhashyam, Changalaraya Reddy, and ‘Vīrakesari’ Sitarama Shastri. I too am one among them.
This is the third part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 4
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 4 Source: prekshaa]]
Vidurāśvattha Riots
The agitation for a Responsible Government led to yet another riot, this time at Vidurāśvattha. This incident too led to firings and killings.
Appaji Gowda was Kolar’s Deputy Commissioner then.
The government formed a committee to conduct an inquiry and find the rioters and perpetrators of the agitation. A judge from Madras, Vepa Ramesham Pantulu was appointed the President of the committee. D’Souza, a retired judge of British India, was a member of the committee as was A R Nageswara Iyer. During the tenure of this committee, in order to facilitate a compromise between the Government and Congress, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel visited Bangalore. Since the wedding of Sri Jayachamaraja Wodeyar was also imminent, the situation was favourable for such negotiations.
The first riots in Bangalore were related to the Gaṇapati-vigraha. Once the riots were brought under control, a committee was formed to investigate its origins, fomentation, and dissipation. Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya was made the President of the committee. The members were Justice D K Rama Rao, Sir K P Puttanna Chetty, V Manickavelu Mudaliar, and a few others. The committee held the investigation in full public view in the auditorium of the Mythic Society. Ten to fifteen members testified as witnesses. The Inspector General of Police, S Hiriyanna was questioned, as was the Law Secretary B Nagappa. Finally, the committee prepared a detailed report and sent it to the government. That report has since been published. One and all must study that treatise with care. The main points are as follows:
- All the powers of the Mysore State remain centralized. 2. Therefore, all the officers and heads of the departments look to the centre for advice and orders instead of functioning independently using their own discretion to arrive at a just decision. 3. Thus, the powers of the departments and the officers are curtailed, leading to inordinate delays in acting swiftly and decisively to deliver justice. 4. This is as evident as daylight when it comes to the handling of the Bangalore riots. The police officers did not act in an unbiased and courageous manner. In such testing times the government machinery simply broke down. 5. To fix this, the only antidote is a Responsible Government that will lead to independent functioning of various departments. The system should be such that the various arms of the government should be mutually accountable.
The report led to an incident that is noteworthy and instructive.
The Magnanimity of Mirza Ismail
One afternoon, the report was sent from the office of Visvesvaraya to the Dewan’s office. The same evening, Visvesvaraya went for his daily walk and as was usual, came to Mirza’s house. When Visvesvaraya saw Mirza, he picked up his walking stick, pointed towards his photo that was hung on the wall, and said, “There is no place for this now. Remove it.”
Surprised, Mirza asked, “Why do you say so?”
“I sent you the report, didn’t I? I don’t think you were happy upon seeing that. I assume you are upset!”
Some context is required here. The sitting room of Mirza’s house was adorned with four portraits: One was of the Persian poet Ferdowsi. This was placed alone. The other three were hung on the wall behind the visitors’ sofa: One was of Mirza’s father Aga Jan. Another was of a group photo of Śrīman-mahārāja Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV sitting with his family, relatives, and friends. It was framed in intricately sculpted ivory. The third was Sir M Visvesvaraya’s.
Mirza simply replied, “You are as important to me as my father is. My father’s place shall remain so in my life, so will yours!”
Regret
Four or five years after the Gaṇapati Riots, Mirza realized that the people who were close to him and were advising him, those whom he considered his well-wishers during those testing times, were in fact not trustworthy nor true well-wishers. Whenever their names came up in conversation with his close friends, he unequivocally said that they had not been worthy of his trust and that he had to suffer (as a result of their malice.) People with vested interests had led him to lurch and he was deceived. Saying so, he would regret his decisions.
In summary, half his tenure went away in handling and suppressing various riots and disturbances. But none can contest the fact that the other half was punctuated with developmental works.
Developmental Projects
We can believe without any qualms that if not for the riots the developmental works would have proceeded at a twofold pace. Whatever I remember of the work he undertook, I have tried to summarize them below.
- The yearly tribute paid to the British government by the Mysore state was cut. 2. The control over the Bangalore Cantonment was added to the Mysore kingdom and all the surplus revenue generated in that area belonged to the Mysore government. Such an arrangement was negotiated and the approval was earned. 3. The sugar factory in Mandya. 4. The paper factory in Bhadravati. 5. Arrangements for irrigation and tenancy of the lands around Visvesvaraya Canal (the erstwhile Irwin Canal). 6. Establishment of the Mysore Medical College. 7. Drive for cleanliness in rural areas. 8. More facilities for water supply to Bangalore. 9. To match the governance of Mysore with the governance of India.
here are many more developmental activities that can’t be easily added to this list, which took place due to the encouragement and inspiration of Sir Mirza Ismail. He personally visited all the provinces of the State, observing and correcting any lapses that had occurred. At least a small region of every village should be pleasing to the eyes and must be tidy. There must be a few benches, either made of stone or mortar, for people to sit on. There must be some trees, flowering plants, and grass meadows. This is something that he reiterated often. All houses should maintain cleanliness, even huts. If this wasn’t possible, at least the entrance of the town and the sides of the highways should be pleasing to behold. If people warm up to the practice of tidiness and beauty, they will learn from their surroundings and over time, keep their own places neat and clean. This was his considered opinion.
This is the fourth part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 5
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 5 Source: prekshaa]]
Industries
Mirza Ismail opined that in every town or Hobli, a factory, a trading unit, or some other business should be established. He encouraged prominent people (to set up industries) by promising adequate support from the government. The opportunities thus provided were used by some; they were also misused by some.
In his opinion, the modus operandi of industries were three-pronged: First, the ventures should happen independently due to the efforts of the citizens. If private individuals pool in some money and seek the government’s help, in such cases the government should support them financially and encourage such private endeavors. Second, industries that are beyond the capacity of private individuals, the sort that requires huge investments and specialized scientific equipment, must be taken up by the government. Third, either a public-private partnership model should be followed or the government can start a large-scale industry and eventually, in a step-by-step manner, transfer it to private entities.
On this basis Mirza had planned a few ventures. The nylon textile industry, the paper industry, and some others were part of his plans. When the factory in Bhadravati was incurring losses and when a decision had to be taken whether to close it or keep it running, Mirza decided that it should remain functioning and it should be used instead to manufacture steel as an auxiliary enterprise.
He gave appropriate attention to each and every department under the government. Whatever thoughts arose about improving them, Mirza enthusiastically worked to bring those into action.
He went on horseback through the city of Bangalore every morning until ten or eleven, making arrangements to solve any of the grievances that people would report to him.
Compassion
In this situation I am reminded of an incident. I had gone to the cemetery the day Mirza Ismail died. By the time the funeral was over, it was around nine or ten at night. A huge crowd had gathered. In that chaos, M P Somashekhara Rao and I were separated from each other. I came near the gate of the cemetery in search of him. There was someone there who was crying uncontrollably. By his attire I was able to make out that he was a Hindu. I asked, “Who are you?”
He replied, “Sir, I hail from Cubbonpete. I’m a jeweller. One day, my wife went to fetch water near the tap that is located beside Bannappa Park. For a long time she didn’t return. That day many people had gathered there to fetch water. There was much commotion and fighting. My wife had to wait for an hour before she could finally get some water.
“She was pregnant and brought home the huge pot of water with great effort. She came home in tears, either because there was a quarrel or someone had scolded her or maybe she was feeling unwell. A government servant followed her to our house and inquired, ‘Whose house is this?’ I asked, ‘Why?’ He replied, ‘Dewan Saheb’s entourage is near St. Martha’s Hospital. He ordered me to follow this lady and make note of her whereabouts. And so I’ve come here.’ When I heard this, I was frightened and to alleviate my fears, I went along with him to the place where the Dewan was waiting. As soon as I saw him and greeted him with folded hands, he asked, ‘Who are you?’ and enquired about me in general. I explained my situation. He asked, ‘Isn’t there a tap in your home?’ I said, ‘Sir, I am not so well to do. We fetch water from the street tap.’ He then asked, ‘How far is the street tap from your house?’ I replied, ‘I think it’s around half a mile, sir. My house is on the narrow lane behind the tap. We have to take a circuitous path even to reach there.’
“The Dewan addressed the engineer who was with him. ‘Can a tap be installed near this gentleman’s house?’ The engineer replied, ‘I will draft a plan and submit it. If the funds are granted I can start the work.’ The Dewan said at once, ‘I immediately grant the required funds. Start the work and ensure that water reaches his house from the new tap by tomorrow morning. In such a crowded locality if we install a few more taps wouldn’t it be helpful to people? In each of these small localities a tap should be installed at a convenient spot. By the time I come on my official rounds tomorrow, you should have helped them with a tap.’
“Sir, the work was thus done as per his orders. Within two days the tap was installed. Now we are drinking water from the same tap. Looking at the women’s quarrels, the commotion for water, and the difficulties of pregnant women, Dewan Saheb was so moved. Now that he is gone, who else will look after us like he did?”
Thus he lamented.
Daily Routine
Typically, Mirza Ismail’s daily routine was as follows.
In the morning, at eight he began the official city rounds on his horse. He examined some localities of the city as planned earlier. He would take note of broken walls, piles of waste, potholes in the roads, appearances in the surroundings, and other irregularities. He then advised his subordinates to take appropriate measures. This would go one till around half past eleven. On some days if he had other pressing matters, he returned early.
In the afternoon, he would take a bath and then go to the office. He stayed there till five in the evening. After that, he would have visitors till eight.
Then he partook of his dinner and dispose of files sitting alone in his office until midnight. This happened in a systematic manner.
He kept two notebooks. Every night he went through them without fail. One of the notebooks consisted of all the orders he had given to his subordinates on that day. He went through those orders one by one and took note of what orders were already executed and what remained to be done. In case of pending orders, repeated reminders would be sent.
The second notebook consisted of things that required his personal attention. Someone’s request, someone’s suggestion, some opinion that he had read somewhere – all these went into that notebook.
After his daily rounds, he made his scribe write an inspection note to serve as a reminder. In that, a detailed note of everything he had seen, heard, and ordered would be made. It would then be typed and sent to the concerned officers asking for rejoinders.
To summarize, among the State’s public servants, when it came to working tirelessly day and night, the Dewan was the first and foremost.
He never got bored of having visitors and listening to their requests and grievances.
Every night Mirza read all the important newspapers in circulation. He marked important articles using a blue pencil and instructed his assistant to store them in the appropriate register.
Because he worked so meticulously he never forgot anything related to the welfare of the people. One way or the other, his mind was always occupied by the affairs of the State.
Of all the gifts God had bestowed upon him, one was good humour – a clear mind that grasped matters with patience, accepting everything without complaints with a smiling face. That was a great trait.
Mirza would always keep an eye on the integrity of government officials. If there were any allegations of bribery or misappropriation of funds he conducted a thorough investigation and punished the guilty. When government officials borrowed more than they could repay, he chided them. When three or four Assistant Commissioners had borrowed more than their capability to repay, leading to cases being filed against them in courts, he granted them leave and ordered them to rejoin duty only after they could produce proof of them being debt-free.
In one of the departments, Mirza had given the same treatment to a close relative of his.
This is the fifth part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 6
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 6 Source: prekshaa]]
Not Bookish Scholarship
Mirza didn’t think of himself as an erudite scholar in polity. He was not too interested in the science of politics nor just theory. What he wanted was peace and contentment of the common people. He left the bookish knowledge to others.
Mirza gave consent to the federal system within which the Mysore State would become a part of the Indian Union. The then Government of India had designed a blueprint for a federal system and had sent it to the Mysore State for approval. Mirza called for a meeting of a few select individuals to discuss the proposal and if necessary suggest corrections and changes before sending it back to the Government of India. The people in that meeting included the Diwan himself (i.e. Mirza Ismail), S P Rajagopalacharya, Justice Madhava Rau, and a few others. After the meeting concluded, Rajagopalacharya called me and said, “Before you leave, come and meet me in my chambers.” When I went to his room, he said, “The blueprint that we just discussed and finalized has a major flaw. In the case of the judiciary, there is ambiguity with regard to whether the Mysore State would join the Indian Union or not. When I informed Mirza about this, he merely said, ‘Is that such an important matter? We can deal with it later!’ Now, can we afford to go wrong in such an important matter? Meet Mirza immediately and discuss this with him.”
As per his instructions, I went to Mirza’s office and brought up the matter related to the judiciary. He said, “Is it that important? Rajagopalacharya too brought this up during our discussion. Is it such a big deal?”
“Yes, it is indeed important!” said I.
“Have you read the treatise?”
I said, “Yes I have!” and opened the relevant sections of the treatise of law and placed it in front of him.
He smiled and said, “If you have studied it, then that’s fine. Let us include this point.”
Mirza was not a bookish man. But he never denied the importance of theoretical learning either. Bookish erudition is extremely important and it is definitely needed for us. But others can do that; I’m not cut out for that!” was his considered opinion.
Patronage to Learning
Whenever difficult questions would arise—related to finance, taxes, judiciary, technical details related to construction of civil amenities—if he thought it was out of the range of his expertise, he sent such folders to trusted experts for their comments and explanations. Brajendra Nath Seal, K S Chandrashekhara Aiyer, K R Srinivasa Iyengar, M N Krishna Rao, and others were in this close circle. Files and details related to a few extremely important matters would be sent to more than one expert, their comments would be collated, and on the basis of all their comments, decisions were taken, with a holistic perspective.
Mirza Ismail had formed two committees to discuss and thoroughly review all questions related to how the Mysore State should progress and how the country should move forward. One of them was called the ‘Political Affairs Committee.’ I don’t remember the name of the other. However, the committees weren’t successful. They were dissolved after a few months.
Unbiased
Probably there is none who has been able to completely avoid the notoriety that arises from distributing contracts related to government work! An administrator invariably belonged to a certain religion, caste, or community. If people hailing from that social group progress, it is not rare that the administrator is accused of favouring his kinsmen.
Mirza also had to face such allegations.
In sum, I don’t feel that Mirza unjustly favoured Muslims. I can’t say that he was deliberately unjust towards any of them, be it Muslims, Hindus, or Christians. He used a mixed policy when it came to distributing government contracts and subsidies. No community should feel left out and at the same time nobody should get more than he expects. If on one occasion a certain group would get a contract, the next time another group would get it; if in a certain field one group was the beneficiary, in another field a different group would benefit. Overall there should be some notion of equality. This was his opinion.
Such a policy would invariably lead to the dissatisfaction of one group or the other. As impossible as it is for a judge to give a judgment favouring both parties, the distribution of such contracts and subsidies too can never make everyone happy. A certain type of work can be assigned to one party, not two. Thus from the administrator’s perspective, both fame and notoriety is guaranteed. No amount of discussion and debate would lead to any meaningful solution. If Mirza or someone else was accused as biased, the only answer that can be given is: let them find satisfactory answers for such things from their own conscience.
Cow Protection
There were situations that regularly placed Mirza in moral dilemmas. One such topic was cow protection. The Hindus demanded that the Mysore State should support a cow protection law. The Muslims argued that such a thing shouldn’t be dealt with by the State; if so it would lead to curtailment of one of the rights that have been around for a long time.
Is there any solution amicable to both the parties in this matter? A committee was formed by the government in 1926 to cogitate over this and Sir Puttanna Shetty was appointed as its President. The committee brought in many witnesses and after investigation recommended that cow protection was very much needed and suggested other solutions that didn’t involve the State or the Judiciary.
Mirza being a Muslim and the Mahārāja being a devout Hindu, no party got the upper hand and the affairs were handled with the vision of equality.
A weird incident took place early in Mirza’s tenure as Dewan, circa 1926–27. C M Garudacharya, the son of Mirza’s teacher Prof. C M Vijayaraghavacharya, started a bus service in Bangalore. Mirza was instrumental in providing support from the government’s side. The people who rode tongas (jaṭaka) suffered losses due to this new mode of transportation. They held Mirza responsible for their plight. They shouted slogans and held a strike. All the tonga owners in the city brought their tongas and parked them in front of the Bangalore Palace. I had been there to see it. The place was filled with horse dung and people were screaming on the top of their voices. Many Muslims were shouting slogans like: “How is Mirza a Muslim? He doesn’t even sport a beard!”
Muslims accused him of being favourable to Hindus, while Hindus accused him to be biased towards Muslims!
One who adheres to dharma should be indifferent to both the parties and conduct himself in an impartial manner. He must undertake that which will lead to the welfare of all the people, adhering to his conscience. It is difficult for one to possess such a firm mind. But if one doesn’t have that fortitude, the accomplishment of justice becomes difficult.
Mirza was an unequivocal opponent of the partition of India and the creation of Pakistan. His desire was to leave no stone unturned when it comes to achieving unity among Hindus and Muslims and also infuse a strong sense of Indianness (Bhāratīyatā) among Christians and members of all religions.
This is the sixth part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 7
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 7 Source: prekshaa]]
Wise Counsel
Mirza Ismail was courageous in providing counsel to the British government. In the course of his speeches at the Representative Assembly or the Legislative Assembly, he would discuss the political events of the day and offer pertinent suggestions. He would take into consideration the opinions of Gandhi, Nehru, and others on the one side and the views of Viceroy Irwin, Lord Willingdon, Lord Wavell, et al. on the other; finally he would provide suggestions showing that there was a way in which both sides could cooperate with each other for the greater good. There was no other Dewan of the princely states who could warn the British government and support Congress openly like Mirza.
Mirza had friends all over the world. Several citizens of Britain were his friends. So also, many Americans, Germans, and other Europeans. Mirza regularly corresponded with them by writing letters; he would invite them to be his guest and developed great friendships.
Royal Relatives
In a State that follows the system of monarchy, ministers don’t have problems with kings but often with their kinsmen. The system of monarchy keeps the ruler occupied at all times. If the king wishes to get things done, he must struggle with the ministers and prominent citizens of the State. But what about the king’s brother, king’s uncles, etc. – what work do they have, what responsibilities are they given? The State has to still keep all these members of the royalty in opulence. They are part of the royal family. Life goes on happily for them. But what work would they do?
The same question arose in Britain too. But they found the solution to that challenge. England has a huge army. There are many honorary positions in various divisions. So also the social undertakings – schools, charities, old age homes, hospitals, orphanages, women’s organizations; they too have such honorary positions. These honorific posts are reserved for royalty. The responsibilities aren’t heavy: dress nicely, follow the etiquette, speak some inane platitudes dripping with political correctness, be the cynosure of the gatherings – these are the requirements for holding such positions. The members of royalty happily accept such positions. They think of it as an easy and joyful way to spend their time.
Mysore, however, does not have such facilities.
Discord in the Royal Family
Sir M Visvesvaraya realised this and to accommodate the crown prince (Narasimharaja Wodeyar) and give him some responsibility of the kingdom, he created a new post called ‘Extraordinary Member of Council.’ Many eyebrows were raised. After one or two years the skepticism that people harboured turned out to be valid and it was evident that the experiment was doomed to fail.
This question remained even during Mirza’s tenure. While on the outside both the Dewan and the Crown Prince were respectful to each other, there was discord in private. It is not prudent to discuss the reasons for this. There is no solid proof to unravel the complete truth. We can simply state that all was not well between Mirza and the Crown Prince.
One of the reasons for this is the existence of people in the royal family who were against Mirza. The fact that the Mahārāja showed a lot of affection to Mirza itself may have been the reason for this. At any rate, it was a matter of irritation.
And the effect of this discord was felt by both the administration and public affairs.
The Parishad Grant
In 1934–35, the Crown Prince was the President of the Karnataka Sahitya Parishad and I was the Vice-President. The Parishad used to get a grant of ₹2,000 from the government. Before that it used to be only ₹1,000. For that sum to be enhanced to ₹2,000 several requests and negotiations had to be done. However, even that amount was not sufficient. When the topic was brought up in the annual meeting of the Parishad, it was decided that a request for further enhancement should be prepared and sent to the Mahārāja. The request now was for the allocation of ₹3,000 per year.
I sent this request to the Private Secretary of the Mahārāja. It seems like it took the usual route and was sent to the government. But the Parishad didn’t receive any reply from the government. The time period of the previous grant was over. No grant money was released; not even the earlier sum. The situation of the Parishad became difficult. I felt I should meet the President, i.e. the crown prince, and ask for his suggestion. So I wrote a request letter to his Private Secretary and fixed an appointment. It was for nine in the morning.
Meeting the Crown Prince
On the appointed day, I went there in the morning. I took the stairs on the southern side of the palace of the Crown Prince and reached the room on the first floor where the meeting was to be held. The meeting went well. The crown prince interacted with me with great love and affection. He suggested that I should meet Mirza personally and talk to him; that would solve the problem.
I immediately said, “There is some disagreement between Mirza and me. Due to political reasons, he is angry with me.”
The prince gave a laugh and said, “Let it be so. But this is a matter of public interest. For its fruition, you have to budge a little and show humility. I’ll talk to Mirza. In any case, you will come to the tea party hosted by Mirza tomorrow evening, right?”
“I have received no invite. Mostly I won’t come.”
“Oh is it so?” said the prince and immediately called Mirza on the phone. After talking to him, he turned to me and said, “The invite has been sent out to you and will reach you. You should come. I shall also be there. We can talk to him together.”
Environment of Suspicion
I took leave and was about to exit. Since I had taken the stairs on the southern side, I went to climb down using the same stairs. One of the royal attendants came up to me and said, “Sir, not from this side, please take the stairs on the northern side.”
“But I’ve left my footwear on this side!”
He replied, “I’ve already shifted them to the other side.”
“What’s all this fuss about?” I asked Tammayya, the Secretary to the crown prince.
“Another visitor was scheduled to arrive after you this morning (possibly B K Garudacharya). He might have recognized your presence seeing your footwear, so it has been shifted.”
Such was the environment then.
If any of Mirza’s friends met the crown prince or any of the crown prince’s friends met Mirza it would lead to rumours and suspicion.
As per the orders of the crown prince, I went to Mirza’s house the next evening to attend the tea party. The prince had arrived before me. He assured me that he had already talked to Mirza and everything was sorted out. The grant was likewise sanctioned again.
This is the seventh part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.
Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 8
[[Amin-ul-Mulq - Sir Mirza M Ismail - Part 8 Source: prekshaa]]
Discord
Once again rumours flew thick and fast about Mirza Ismail when the Crown Prince died in Bombay (11 March 1940). Some people spread rumours that Mirza harboured contempt towards the crown prince and hence he didn’t show his respect during the funeral.
The people who resorted to such mischief gained nothing from such tales except that it caused deep agony to Mirza.
Every now and then, Mirza would be told that the yearly allowance given to the Crown Prince was not sufficient and should be increased. Mirza would say that the situation was not conducive for such luxuries. This may also be the reason for discord.
The Mahārāja was not totally oblivious to these things. In spite of knowing all this, he extended the same support and affection towards Mirza as always.
Allegations
It wasn’t uncommon for people to complain to the Mahārāja about Mirza. Many prominent members of the society who were retired from their positions would often complain to the king saying, “Mirza has made such-and-such a mistake.” The Mahārāja promptly informed Mirza of the same and told him, “See what can be done to rectify this.”
Once, a retired judge from the Bombay High Court, probably Justice Govind Pradhan, who had been the guest during the Dasara celebrations asked the Mahārāja, “We now have only one Hindu state. Why do you have a Muslim as the Dewan? Couldn’t you find a single Hindu?” The Mahārāja himself narrated this episode to Mirza and said, “Meet this eminent personage and offer him some reply!”
End of Administration
The last act now.
Mahārāja Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV passed away in the Bangalore Palace on the night of the third of August, 1940. Mirza stayed throughout with the corpse, which was taken to Mysore, where the funeral rites were performed. No one could meet Mirza during the following ten to twelve days. He was immersed in sadness.
One day, a few friends went to meet him, which included Sir Jagadish Prasad. The group consisted of Bangalore Sahukar Hariyanna, Sajjan Rao, and Subbarama Shetty, among others. In one voice they all requested Mirza, “Now your service to the kingdom is all the more important. The new Mahārāja is young and inexperienced. You must serve as a pillar of support to him and handle the affairs of the kingdom. Mirza said in a sad tone, “Please tell him your troubles!” We were all pained to hear this.
After a few months, the question of establishing an automobile factory in Bangalore came up. Sir M Visvesvaraya and Walchand Hirachand were behind this plan. Mirza enthusiastically supported it.
However, this was bitterly contested by the European businessmen and their domestic lobbyists in the Mysore kingdom. The Resident then was Constance Maude Stuart Fraser (Fraser II), son of the former Resident Sir Stuart Milford Fraser. His strong opposition was decisive. Mirza was extremely dissatisfied by this.
There were other reasons too. The main reason was the personal intolerance of internal factions of the Mysore royalty.
Once when Mirza was extremely dissatisfied with the state of affairs, he ordered his personal assistant to bring a few large rose garlands. He brought a basketful of flowers and some garlands. Mirza took a bath, wore fresh clothes, had the flowers placed in his car, and drove to the final resting place of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV. He reverentially placed the garlands there, burnt incense sticks, folded his hands, observed a few moments of silence, and returned back wiping his tears.
Thus ended the long cherished friendship of fifty to sixty years, a friendship that was nurtured right from their childhood.
Resignation and retirement followed this incident.
Life After Retirement
After retiring as the Dewan of the Mysore State, Mirza served the Jaipur State as Dewan for two years. He strived to make the lives of people residing in Ajmer, Jaisalmer, and other cities under the kingdom comfortable. He earned the love and respect of the people there.
From there, he moved to Hyderabad as the Dewan although he was not enthusiastic about it. For a long time, the Nizam had repeatedly invited him saying, “Being a Muslim, do you wish to decline an offer of being the Dewan of a Nizami kingdom?” Mirza was caught by these persuasions and finally relented. He was already apprehensive about the affairs there, thinking that it wouldn’t suit his conscience. He saw that fanatics and bigots had surrounded the Nizam; they were trying to control him and lead him astray. Mirza had prophetically warned the Nizam many times that the conundrum of the Razakar party would never yield anything good to the kingdom. I have even seen these warnings communicated in writing. When he realized that his wise counsel fell on deaf ears, he decided that Hyderabad was not for him and returned to Bangalore.
From then onwards, he stayed in his residence at No. 2, Ali Askar Road, Bangalore.
His house never looked like the abode of a retired official. It looked busier than an officer’s place, full of activity and life. People thronged to meet him every day, from many parts of India, England, America, and elsewhere. Parties were thrown every week. Many kings and princes would visit him.
Mirza hardly had any free time. Whenever he would get some time off he read the works of the great Persian poets like Firdausi, Hafez, and others. Every now and then he quoted some beautiful lines from the original Farsi, translated them into English, and shared the joy with others. A clean environment, full of joyful flowering plants, a lawn as soft as velvet, an optimum serving of almonds and dry fruits like dates, a soft breeze, and connoisseur-friends: this was the charm of his twilight days.
Death
When he visited Europe for a surgery, he also visited his old friends in England and France. On the way back, he visited Persia, the birthplace of his ancestors, and travelled around. He lamented that the situation of that country was pitiable and in general the situation in many countries in Asia evoked nothing but despair.
The illness that was treated in Europe didn’t heal completely. When I visited him during that illness, he had told me that he might need further treatment, for which he was slated to travel to Bombay or Vienna.
On the third day after my visit, his life on earth came to an end. The night before his death, when one of his friends called him and asked, “How are you?” Mirza replied, “I’m getting ready.” The friend didn’t understand what he meant. And so Mirza clarified by saying, “I’m preparing for the trip.”
Probably those were his last words.
ಅಳುತ ನೀಂ ಬಂದಂದು
ನಿನ್ನ ಜನ ನಕ್ಕರ್
ನಗುತೆ ನೀ ಪೋದಂದು
ನಿನ್ನ ಜನವಳುವರ್
[You came into this world crying. Then your people laughed.You left this world with a smile. But now your people are crying!]
This is the final part of the translation of the eleventh essay in D V Gundappa’s magnum-opus Jnapakachitrashaale (Volume 4) – Mysurina Dewanaru. Thanks to Hari Ravikumar and Karthik Muralidharan for suggestions and edits.