P. N. Krishnamurti

Sir P. N. Krishnamurti (Part 1)

[[Sir P. N. Krishnamurti (Part 1) Source: prekshaa]]

Śrīmān (who was later knighted) P. N. Krishnamurti had to wait for quite some time before he obtained the position of the Dewan.

Krishnamurti was the grandson of the eminent personality Adi Purnaiah. ¹ Purnaiah was Tippu Sultan’s Dewan and later served the British Government for free, for which the British suggested to the Maharaja ² to give Purnaiah the jahagir of Yelandur taluk – these are all facts that have gone down the annals of history. Many people from even the current generation know about the satras ³ that were run in his name at a few tourist sites and other important places across the state.

It is the same Purnaiah’s grandson who is the protagonist of our current story.

Sir P N Krishnamurti was a learned and well-mannered human being. He quite naturally possessed many qualities such as humility, virtue, honesty, and affection towards those dependent on him. He conducted his administrative duties with absolute loyalty.

Hustle for the Post

Apparently Krishnamurti was the Deputy Commissioner in Tumkur around the time he rose to power as the Dewan. Since Sheshadri Iyer’s arrogance and intensity were both quite strong, the faction of Krishnamurti’s supporters feared that he would be deprived of prospects. On the other side, since V P Madhava Rao was gaining popularity with his vigorous efforts, their fears doubled. Apparently, this desire had driven them to desperation.

His friends believed that the only means Krishnamurti had at his disposal was to earn the Indian Government’s sanctuary. As this idea began taking shape, conveniently, Lord Curzon ⁴ became the Viceroy; his visit to Mysore turned out to be a good opportunity. Krishnamurti was the only wealthy citizen of the Mysore State. Thus, everyone believed that inviting the rich British gentleman—Lord Curzon—home and treating him would be most appropriate.

In November of 1900, Viceroy Lord Curzon graced Bangalore. To welcome him, a spacious Banquet hall was constructed in Pūrṇa Prāsāda, Krishnamurti’s bunglow. Curzon, his family, and his entourage along with the authorities and aristocrats of our state were treated with choicest of dishes and delicacies until they were thoroughly contended. Thereafter, the banquet hall was renamed Curzon Hall. I have seen huge billiards tables decorating it. These tables might have been in use during Krishnamurti’s tenure as the Dewan.

Krishnamurti was the Dewan for just five years. An incident of great significance occurred during that period. It was the investiture ceremony of His Majesty Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV on the 8^(th) of August 1902. For this celebration, Lord Curzon had come to Mysore for the second time. The speech he made during the ceremony was an ugly display of his arrogance.

Krishnamurti took forward the activities started by K Seshadri Iyer. If I remember right, the Department of Agriculture was either started or expanded during his period. Probably even the Co-Operative Department began in that period.

Start of Slackness

As mentioned earlier, Krishnamurti was a humble human being. He never imposed his dominance on anyone. He never nursed a grudge against anyone either. People would speak amongst themselves that during his tenure the administration became slow and lethargic. The government machinery became slack. A few people opined that the reason for this slackness was Krishnamurti’s gentle nature and goodness, which was unable to detect fraud and incapable of being stern; owing to this, the officials became listless and indifferent with only a bare minimum of integrity. The officials would carry out their work with the attitude of doing only that which was absolutely essential, to the extent of doing just the basic minimum that would allay their fears of being summoned [by their superiors].

During Krishnamurti’s tenure as the Dewan, there wasn’t a dearth of capable and competent people. H V Nanjundayya, M Shama Rao, and D M Narasinga Rao were the most eminent of the stalwarts. Among them, D M Narasinga Rao was known to be the cleverest.

Narasinga Rao

I had the opportunity to closely watch the modus operandi of D M Narasinga Rao. However, that was during Sir M Visvesvaraya’s tenure.

When Visvesvaraya was in power, there was a dispute between the Governments of Mysore and Madras, concerning the Kannambadi (Krishnarajasagara) Reservoir. To settle the matters, the imperial government appointed Nethersole ⁵, a well-known engineer, for arbitration. Visvevaraya handed over the responsibility of drafting the testimony for the arbitrator’s perusal to D M Narasinga Rao. Impressed with the testimony drafted by Narasinga Rao, Nethersole said in appreciation, “A similar testimony from the Government of Madras would ease my duty.” That is how brilliant D M Narasinga Rao was.

However, during Krishnamurti’s tenure as the Dewan, Narasinga Rao used to hold a small position—as a Registrar in the Dewan’s office.

Secretariat Manual

Apparently, Viceroy Curzon during his visit to Mysore, inspected, screened the administrative protocols, and suggested that the Government of Mysore could emulate the system followed at the Government of Shimla’s central office. As advised, the Government of Mysore sent D M Narasinga Rao to get introduced to the procedures and arrangements at the Indian Government’s central office. This was during Krishnamurti’s tenure.

Returning to Mysore after his appointment for the task, he prepared a book of regulations called the Secretariat Manual and made improvements. The method of recording the government’s documents and letters; segregation of files into three categories viz., ‘Early,’ ‘Urgent,’ and ‘Immediate’ and sticking the respective files with grey, green, and red cardboard flags with letters boldly printed on them – these were the sort of processes and best practices that D M Narasinga Rao organised and implemented.

This is the first part of a two-part English translation of the fifth chapter of D V Gundappa’s Jnapakachitrashaale – Vol. 4 – Mysurina Diwanaru. Edited by Hari Ravikumar.

Footnotes

Sir P. N. Krishnamurti (Part 2)

[[Sir P. N. Krishnamurti (Part 2) Source: prekshaa]]

Unspirited Functioning

Despite all this, the administration showed no increase in its spirit and enthusiasm. I have thought about its reason. In my view, it was the lack of intensity, drive, and spirit of freshness in people, which caused this. Let me quote an example.

By nature, Narasinga Rao Purnaiah [i.e. Krishnamurti] was a great person. He was a generous man who carried a serious disposition and was a well-informed reader of books. His eyes had lost their sharpness. Yet he would closely read and grasp the most difficult of treatises.

He had a high regard for me. He had himself ordered me to visit him at Pūrṇa Prāsāda not less than twice a week and spend at least some time in conversation. Accordingly I would regularly visit Pūrṇa Prāsāda and I shall precisely narrate an experience from those visits.

In a large room upstairs, Narasinga Rao Purnaiah would be in the company of five or six of his friends. The moment I stepped across the threshold into the room, one of his friends informed him that ‘such-and-such a person’ had come. Expressing happiness and asking me to be seated, Narasinga Rao Purnaiah would instruct one of his servants, “Arrange for the refreshments to be brought.” That servant would instruct another, “Krishnacharru, go fast!” This Krishnacharya would walk two or three steps and instruct Ramacharya and Ramacharya would walk five steps and order Gundacharya, “Fast!” All these would be audible to me. After ten or fifteen minutes, one of them would bring the refreshments in a plate. Following him, another would bring water. The third would bring coffee. By this time another friend would arrive. He too would be served refreshments the very same way.

Two or three of the stewards who would bring the refreshments upstairs from the ground floor, would firmly stand midway. Likewise, if five or six guests arrived, five to six of the servants would stand right there, to hear them talking. Waiting and watching what the groups of great men speak to their master itself was the job of those four or five people.

That’s not all. Let us assume someone brought up the name ‘Excise Commissioner’ during the conversation. At that very moment, one of the acharya-s would say, “He’s not in town. He has gone towards Shimoga.”

Another acharya would say, “Not towards Shimoga, it is towards Kolar!”

In this manner, the conversation would digress from a certain place to some place unknown. No strictness, no boundaries. Everyone’s mind wavered like a paper kite cut from its string. There was no result to anyone. The feeling of ‘We spoke’ was in itself a sense of solace to those who spoke.

A Mishap

During Krishnamurti’s tenure, although there was not much of a difference in either the administration or in the people’s conditions, a certain incident pertaining to newspapers and freedom of citizens is worth remembering. None of the newspapers displayed much enthusiasm about the Dewan’s activities but a few of them criticized him quite bitterly. In the Mysore Standard, which was published twice a week, and in Naḍègannaḍi, its sister concern, the articles were quite caustic and acerbic. M Srinivasa Iyengar and his brothers were the editors of these newspapers. They were all Mysoreans.

On the first day of the Citizens Representative Assembly’s session in Mysore (1904–5), M Krishna Iyengar—the Mysore representative of the Mysore Standard—once came to the place meant for correspondents. He was told that there was no place for him there and was ordered by the officials to leave the forum and go away. Everyone was taken aback by this behavior. And that was also criticized in a few newspapers.

A few weeks later, in the middle of the night, somebody attempted to rob the Mysore Standard’s printing press in a building located to the west of Tippu Sultan’s palace near the Āñjaneyasvāmī Temple in the Bangalore Fort area. Apart from pulling out a bale of papers and setting it on fire, the miscreants ransacked documents and letters in the office; their intent perhaps was to find out who were all writing articles for the newspaper.

The police department appeared to be negligent about this incident. No facts came out of the investigation. The rumour on the streets was that either a strong admirer of the Dewan or someone who wanted to please the officers was behind this wicked deed. Whoever they might have been, whatever might have been their intent, that incident didn’t brighten Krishnamurti’s success.

Cordiality

When I first met Krishnamurti, perhaps six or seven years had elapsed since his retirement from the position of the Dewan.

That day, there was some feast at the Pūrṇa Prāsāda. Many brāhmaṇas of the Mādhva sect had graced the occasion. Around two hundred to two hundred and fifty people were there. Even though I desire to describe the grandeur of the feast, it is quite an impossible venture. This is one of the areas in which I have not gained expertise. However, I can mention another thing. If people from the year 1969 hear about those arrangements, I’m afraid, they might feel jealous about their ancestors and perhaps even ridicule them as being gluttonous. That was when I had the chance to observe the sort of generosity and reverence that Krishnamurti had in his personal life. He personally observed every row of guests [who were partaking of their meal] and attending to them with great affection.

Accusation of Partiality

People used to privately make an accusation that during Krishnamurti’s tenure Mādhva brāhmaṇas grew strong. I am given to believe that Krishnamurti was, however, not the reason for it. Be it in spirit or in governance, Krishnamurti was never knowingly partial. He never brought an incompetent person to a place that demanded quality and competence.

But there was something unique. If one observed Krishnamurti’s retinue that surrounded him at all times, there would be room for slight suspicion. In the vicinity of Pūrṇa Prāsāda, there was a small shrine of prāṇa-devaru [Hanumān] to the East. I have heard that it still exists. However, it has considerably shrunk. It must be around nine or ten square feet in area. During Krishnamurti’s time, that shrine used to be half to three-quarters of a furlong away from the main building of Pūrṇa Prāsāda. There used to be a pond in between. Every evening at the shrine, there would be maṅgaḷārati and bhajans. Krishnamurti and his younger brother Purnayya used to come along with their families for the maṅgaḷārati. After that, some devotee would offer a devaranāma. At this point, a few fanatics used to sing thus –

ಎದ್ದೆದ್ದು ವದೀತಾನೆ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ
ನಮ್ಮ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ ನಮ್ಮ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ॥
ಅದ್ವೈತಿ ಭಂಡನ್ನ ಸ್ಮಾರ್ತರಂಡೀಗಂಡನ್ನ
ಎದ್ದೆದ್ದು ವದೀತಾನೆ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ
ನಮ್ಮ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ ನಮ್ಮ ಮಧ್ವರಾಯ॥

Madhva-rāya will jump up and kick—
Madhva-rāya, our Madhva-rāya—
the shameless advaitin, the whore-husband smārta!
Madhva-rāya will jump up and kick,
Madhva-rāya, our Madhva-rāya!

They would sing this in rhythm. Those singing and listening would exchange glances and make signs with their eyes. Had it been sung privately, it might have gratified those who were singing. However, their actions, intending to achieve another kind of fulfillment, were out in the open; this came to the notice of non-Mādhvas and brought dishonor to Krishnamurti’s name. When someone brought this to Krishnamurti’s attention, he rebuked those devotees and apparently had the practice stopped. However, what had happened had happened. Due to this, a bit of disgrace inevitably crept in.

In fact, Krishnamurti was an admirer of Sanskrit scholars and the ancient śāstras. He used to convene scholarly circles from the three schools of Vedānta[1] and honour the scholars. His circle of friends included many esteemed non-Mādhva gentlemen such as H V Nanjundayya and M Venkatakrishnayya. Krishnamurti had once welcomed the jagadguru of Śṛṅgeri to Pūrṇa Prāsāda, performed pāda-pūjā ⁶, and served a feast.

There are many such instances that prove that Krishnamurti did not carry any sectarian prejudices.

In his individual conduct, he was modest, graceful, pious and pure.

This is the second part of a two-part English translation of the fifth chapter of D V Gundappa’s Jnapakachitrashaale – Vol. 4 – Mysurina Diwanaru. Edited by Hari Ravikumar.

Footnotes