25 December, 1972: C. Rajagopalachari’s Death Anniversary

Reminiscences of Chakravarti Rajagopalachari by Lord Casey

I do not claim to have known Rajaji well although I had a number of contacts with him in one way or another over a considerable period of time – enough anyhow to create a great deal of respect for him in my mind over at least 40 year.

There were many gaps in our contacts but these were bridged to an extent by his sending me copies of the many pamphlets that he wrote on the 1930’s and 1940’s.

My last personal contact with him was in 1951 just before he resigned from the Home Ministry of the Government of India. I had called on him in New Delhi and he told me that he was about to quite politics and to resign from the Indian Home Ministry. I was shocked to hear this and told him so and asked him why. He said he was 73 and that he much wanted some time to himself to read and think and write and talk to his friends. I continued to be horrified but he was not to be moved. He said he did not have any desire to die in harness. So I said goodbye and went away in some distress on India’s behalf.

Not long after this when I was back in Australia, I heard the news that Rajaji had become Chief Minister of Madras, so I sent him a facetious telegram and a letter reminding him of our last conversation not very long before, to which he replied, I think rather shame-facedly.

Since that time I’ve had to be content with reading “Swarajya” – Rajaji at second hand, although better than nothing.

However an occasional story about Rajaji came my way, the best of which was from a young Hindu who told it to me on a visit to Australia. It went like this. An old Conservative friend of Rajaji called on him in Madras and found him cleaning his own shoes. Suitably horrified his friend said – “Rajaji – cleaning your own shoes?”. “Yes (Said Rajaji) whose shoes do you clean?”.

That for me was the last I heard of Rajaji, that great Servant of India who I’d been privileged to know something of and who I liked to think was typical of the best in India. My only contact since then has been the obvious distress in which Rajaji’s death has left his many friends – and me.           

26^th February 1973                                                                                               Lord Casey

Source: C. Rajagopalachari papers (IV Instalment), MSS, NMML