106 years ago on the same day i.e. 17.6.1911 Tirunelveli Collector Ash came to Maniyachi by train at 10.38 am to see his children studying in Kodaikanal. He was accompanied by his wife, Mary. They were waiting for the arrival of the train ‘The Ceylon Boat Mail’. The first class train carrying Ash was segregated and attached to the boat mail to start the journey to Kodaikanal. Boat mail was expected to arrive at 10.48am. During this time Ash’s bodyguard had gone to fetch water. They were important milestones in the Indian independence struggle. The death knell for the British imperialist ideology of ‘Indians will eat whatever they give and endure no matter how they beat’.
A DipTop Asami. He had his long hair folded and tied. Dress like something is going to the office. Enters the first class box where Ash was. He is Vanchinathan. Twenty-five year old youth. Collector Ash and his wife were sitting opposite each other in the box. Vanzi had a Belgian Browning rifle in his hand. Ash pointed to the chest. The gun exploded three times before Ash realized the devastation of the situation. Ash fell to the ground. Wife Mary screamed. The riot ground was the place where the guards chased him to run away. Unable to escape anymore, Vanchi went into a toilet at the train station and snuck inside.
A desperate attempt was made to bring him out for almost an hour. Not worth it. After a long silence, the sound of ‘dummies’ echoed from the bathroom. It was all over. Vanchi shot himself in the mouth with a gun so as not to be caught alive by the white man.
The Ash massacre topped the world news the next day. The Indians will fight only against the British government. The incident caused a catastrophe for the white government, which thought it would not express personal anger against whites and the authorities.
Who is this Ash?
Ash Robert William Escort Ash, born November 23, 1872, in Ireland. He completed his schooling in Dublin, the capital of Ireland. In 1892 he began his higher studies at Trinity College. In the Indian Civil Service Examination held in 1894, he placed 40th. He arrived in India on December 4, 1895. Inaugurated as Deputy Collector. He was then gradually promoted to District Magistrate and Collector. In 1907 he was appointed Collector of Tirunelveli. For whatever reason, he was on long leave without immediately joining the work force. He then joined the service on February 17, 1908. We understand that something intuitive has warned him.
Thoothukudi was an important port in those days. It is also famous for its weaving and corals. A&F Harvey, a European company, owned these departments. The same company also acted as an agent for the British Indian Steam Navigation Company. Their job is to look after the shipping business to Thoothukudi and Colombo. There is no one in this industry to oppose or compete with them. It can be called a ‘private kingdom’.
Ash’s Tirunelveli days are extraordinary. It was a district that was constantly creating problems against the British government. Moved every day with problems after Curzon’s partition of Bengal. W. U. Chidambaram Pillai was the reason why the Swadeshi movement was weakening only in Thoothukudi when the whole country was weakening. He belonged to the extremist wing of the Congress in the history of the Indian independence struggle. Balagangadhar accepted Tilak as leader. He started a shipping company called the Indigenous Steam Navigation Company to compete with the British shipping business. He bought two ships with his own money.
On that day the fare on British ships from Thoothukudi to Sri Lanka was 16 Ana. W.U.C. to develop the Swadeshi movement. Ettana only charged for the same voyage on his ships. People traveled on indigenous ships with interest. This action of the WAC annoyed Ash. He decided to break the backbone of the Swadeshi movement.
Indigenous ships came up with a plan to deactivate. Accordingly he issued a notice that English ships could sail free of charge. That means everyone can travel in OC. You can reach Sri Lanka at no cost. He also provided a free umbrella for travelers. An umbrella free for OCIP travel. This incident made us realize that day that free and priceless goods can destroy themselves and their country. People who ignored the identity and the aboriginal movements began to sail on the English ship. Ash’s plan was a huge success. The Indigenous ship was stranded unmanned. W.U.C. suffered the greatest loss. Both ships were later put up for auction, with no other option. It was also auctioned off by the English government.
After the Congress Conference at Surat, in December 1907, V.U.C. held a series of meetings at Tuticorin Beach and Tirunelveli. Subramaniam Siva’s speech ignited in those meetings. This caused unrest for the state. The government began to pay close attention to such meetings.
On February 27, 1908, a protest was held in Thoothukudi against the demands of the workers of the Coral Mills. This was preceded by W.U.C. Ash was in charge of handling that struggle. Realizing the awkwardness of the situation, he called for talks. The agreement was reached during the WAC-led talks. This is a victory for W.C. But Ash felt personally a failure and a disgrace. Came to a conclusion that the WAC should be abolished.
Unaware of this, the W.C. The freedom fighters decided to celebrate the liberation day of Bipin Chandra Pal from Bengal as ‘Independence Day’. Unwilling to do so, the government arrested WAC, Padma Napa Iyengar and Subramaniam Siva on March 12, 1908. A large procession took place to condemn this. Ash ordered the shooting to disperse. Four of them died. Without stopping, he branded the detainees as revolutionaries. W.C. was thus sentenced to forty years in prison. Ash was successful in his endeavor.
This act of Ash had a great impact on the Indian militants.
We read that his wife Mary Lillian Patterson was with Ash when he was killed. He had just arrived from Ireland a few days before the incident. They were married on April 6, 1898. Notes indicate that Mary was one year older than Ashe and that they had four children. After Ash’s murder, Mary returned to her homeland with her children in April 1912. Satisfactorily he was given a pension. The incident in which her husband was shot before her eyes had a great impact on her until her final breath. He did not remarry. Ash’s eldest son served as a colonel in the army in India and retired in 1947. The second son took part in World War II and died in it. Both daughters are not married.
Now let us know a little bit about Vanchinathan.
Vanchinathan belongs to the Red Fort. His father, Raghupathi Iyer, retired from the service at the Travancore temple. Vanchi worked at Punalur in the Travancore Samasthana Forest Department. His wife Ponnammal. Records say Vanchi gave birth to a baby girl and died.
Ash’s actions against W.C. caused an unrelenting rage in Vanchi’s mind. Decided not to tolerate anymore. Gathered with his colleagues. There was a plot to assassinate Ash. It was also discussed who would shoot Ash. It was decided that everyone would compete as I, you, and ultimately write everyone’s name on the slip and select someone by shake. An ace was taken from the pile of cards bearing the names. The name written on it was ‘Vanchinathan’. Pleasure to buy. He took three months leave for office. He said goodbye to everyone and left for Pondicherry for arms training. After he left, the other slips were torn apart. It is said that Vanchi had his name written on all the slips.
VVS in Pondicherry Met Iyer. VVS Iyer ran an organization called Bharat Mata. Vanchi incorporated himself into it. It is a branch of Savarkar’s Abhinav Bharat. Vanchi first took up arms training in Pondicherry and later in Baroda. Then he returned home. He was waiting for the right moment to kill Ash. Vanchi’s activities were not liked by his father. Moved the days with disgust.
At this point we read that Maniachi was shot dead at the train station on June 17, 1911, and that Vanchi hid himself in the toilet of the train station. At the same time Vanchinathan was accompanied by another of the hunters while shooting Collector Asha. He is the son of Matasami. Another fighter who forgot independent India. When Vanji is chased by others, Madasamy Pillai escapes using that confusion.
Police seized Vanchi’s body and searched his pocket. Got a second class travel ticket and two papers. One was an editorial in the French magazine Vande Mataram. It read ‘Kill whites and anoint Bharat Mata with blood’. The other was a letter Vanchi had written to the police. These are the phrases mentioned in it.
‘The British killers are trying to take over our country and destroy Sanathana Dharma. Every Indian is trying his best to chase them away and establish Sanatana Dharma. Raman, Krishna, Veera Sivaji, Guru Govind and Arjuna ruled and defended Dharma. The British government wants to see the beauty of the haircut for George V in our country. Three thousand of our Madrasis have vowed to kill George V when he tramples on Indian soil. I, the youngest member of our congregation, have done this so that others may know our intentions. Everyone in India considers it their duty to do such things. ‘ It is also noteworthy that it was not dated in Vanchi’s letter. This makes us realize that he was looking forward to the right moment to kill Asha.
The government launched a massive search operation after the massacre.
Police raided Vanzi Nathan’s home. It turned out that the murder was not an individual act and that many people were involved in the conspiracy. Arumugam Pillai and Somasundaram were arrested based on the evidence obtained. They were later renamed Abrew. The government prepared a list of 16 people based on the information they provided. Began the process of arresting them. Fearing police brutality, Dharmaraja Iyer committed suicide by drinking poison. Venkatesh Iyer committed suicide by slitting his throat. The government arrested the remaining 14.
1. Neelakanda Brahmachari (main culprit)
2. Sankara Krishna Iyer (Vanji’s brother-in-law) – farmer
3. Madathukkadai Chidambaram Pillai – Vegetable business
4. Muthukumarasamy Pillai – Pot Business
5. Subbaiah Pillai – Advocate Clerk
6. Jagannath Iyengar – Culinary Industry
7. Harihara Iyer – Merchant
8. Babu Pillai – Farmer
9. Desikachari – Merchant
10. Neem Iyer – Culinary Industry
11. Chavadi Arunachala Pillai – Agriculture.
12. Alagappa Pillai – Agriculture
13. Vande Mataram Subramanian Iyer – Teacher
14. Pichumani Iyer – Culinary Industry
The English government suspects more than five others of being involved in the Ash assassination plot. Landed in action to arrest them.
1. V.V.S. Iyer
2. Subramania Bharathi
3. Srinivasa Acharya
4. Nagasami Iyer
5. Matasami child
Madasamy Pillai disappeared from Maniyachi railway station. Information about what happened to him after that is not available to us to this day. The remaining four stayed in Pondicherry. They were not immediately arrested in French-occupied Pondicherry. So the government appointed spies to monitor them.
The trial is usually held in a court of jurisdiction over the place where the crime was committed. Accordingly, the Ash murder case should have taken place in the Tirunelveli Sessions Court. However, unusually, the Chennai High Court took up the case itself. The reason is that the murdered man was an Englishman, a collector.
A three-judge bench convicted the 14 arrested. Neelkanda Brahmachari was sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment, Sankara Krishnan to four years imprisonment and other convicts to a lesser sentence. The case was appealed to a five-judge bench. Not worth it. Judgment not amended.
Ash was the first and last British officer to be assassinated in South India. The killing of the husband before the eyes of the wife is very cruel. There is no other way, it is the imperative of the times.
Death by a heroic martyr to a British officer who used the non-violence of the Indians as a shield. While this gift brings sadness to every Indian, it is Vanchinathan who has made it clear that ahimsa, a tattoo drug that does not help a cancerous tumor called ash, can only benefit from surgery.
The injured Ash Durai was taken to Tirunelveli on a passing freight train. Ash died when he arrived in the Gangaikonda area. Meanwhile, notes indicate that Vanchi’s body was kept at the Tirunelveli Junction Bridge Police Station for two days. While various details of Vanchinathan’s final outcome have been documented, the answer to what the British did to his body is still not available. This information should be collected and documented.
We read that Vanchi’s actions did not please his father. Records show that when Vanchi died, his father refused to perform the rituals required of him.
Remembering the centenary of the disappearance of Ash and Vanzinathan in 2011, the Ash family wrote a letter to Vanzinathan’s family saying, “Let’s forget what happened and be at peace.” Vanchinathan’s family replied, “We will welcome Ash’s heirs if they come to India.” This can be appreciated as humanity. But today is the day the 25-year-old shattered the dream castle and family dream that had grown up around him. We are saddened to hear that Vanchinathan’s wife died in 1967 and that the government that ruled independent India did not give him any concessions or pensions until then.
The injustice done by the independent Indian rulers to the heirs of non-Congress martyrs who believed in extremism like Subhash Chandra Bose, Savarkar, Vanchinathan, Bharathiar, WAC, Madasamy Pillai, Vanchinathan is unforgivable. They do not make sacrifices in the hope that the government will give them pensions and praise. There is a saying in the Mahabharata that the respect given to the undeserving and the denied to the deserving will be useless. Today’s rulers have made it clear to us that this is true.
The name of the railway station is ‘Vanchi Maniyachi Chandippu’ after the freedom fighter Vanchinathan. Apart from this, Vanginathan does not seem to have any statues or monuments. But after Ash was killed, 32 of the white man’s foot soldiers joined in the collection hunt. A total of 3002 rupees was collected. The money was used to erect a memorial at the Military Line English Church Cemetery in Palayankottai where Ash’s body was buried. Apart from this, they kept an hour hall for Ash in Thoothukudi and a statue in Palayankottai.
Following Ash’s assassination, Madame Gama made the following remarks in her journal Vande Mataram
‘While the decorated Indian slaves performed a circus dance at the coronation ceremony of King George at the streets of the City of London and expressed their enslavement, only two young men of our nation realized by their coastal act that India was not yet asleep. The bombs that came out of Vanginathan’s guns have made this nation, which has been enslaved for centuries, stand tall. ‘
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