Tamil Nadu - Chennai

A movement to cherish A movement to cherish

M. Soundariya Preetha

The industrialist, G. K. Sundaram, took part in the Vedaranyam salt satyagraha at the age of 16.

G.K. Sundaram ... proud moments

COIMBATORE: "I feel proud of it. Not only proud, I take pleasure in remembering it," says industrialist G. K. Sundaram about Vedaranyam salt satyagraha. He participated in the movement as a 16-year-old student and was imprisoned for six months.

Mr. Sundaram's face glows as he recounts now, 75 years later, going to villages as part of training to take part in the movement, travelling to Vedaranyam in "real summer", the magistrate sentencing him to imprisonment and his father and sister visiting him in the jail.

He was doing Second Form at the Sarvajana High School here and the headmaster used to tell students in the off-hours about Gandhiji and the movement.

And, when the Coimbatore District Congress Committee started enlisting volunteers for the movement, Mr. Sundaram enrolled himself with the blessings of his father, G. Kuppuswamy Naidu. Those who enrolled here walked up to Pollachi, more than 40 km south of Coimbatore, going from village to village, singing national songs and organising propaganda meetings.

Age, the problem

Later, as part of a group of more than 50 volunteers, he went to Vedaranyam and stayed in huts.

He also remembers how he mentioned his age as 22 to the magistrate fearing that he would be put in the borstal school if he gave his real age.

As he narrates, Mr. Sundaram emphasises on the word satyagraha as that was the most important lesson the movement had taught him — "no retaliation" and also "to be honest and true, no lies, no excuses."

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