⁣⁣Seshadri Srinivasa Iyengar was an Indian lawyer, freedom-fighter and politician from the Indian National Congress. Iyengar was the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency from 1916 to 1920. He was a ⁣president of the Swarajya Party faction of the Indian National Congress from 1923 to 1930. ⁣
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Srinivasa Iyengar was the son-in-law of renowned lawyer and first Indian Advocate-general of Madras, Sir Vembaukum Bhashyam Aiyangar. Iyengar’s followers called him Lion of the South⁣
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Srinivasa Iyengar was born on 11 September 1874 in the Ramanathapuram district of Madras Presidency. He graduated in law and practised as a lawyer in the Madras High Court rising to become Advocate-General in 1916. ⁣
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Srinivasa Iyengar remains the youngest lawyer from the Madras bar to be made Advocate-General.⁣
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He resigned his Advocate-General post, his seat in the Governor’s executive council and returned his order in 1920 in protest against the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and joined the Indian National Congress. ⁣
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He participated in the Non-Cooperation Movement. However, in 1923, he broke away along with other leaders as Motilal Nehru and Chittaranjan Das due to differences with Mahatma Gandhi over participating in elections. ⁣
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On 30 August 1928, along with Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose, he formed the Indian Independence League and organised protests against the Simon Commission. He retired from politics due to differences with other Congress politicians over the goal of Dominion status. ⁣
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He returned to politics in 1938 and supported Subhas Chandra Bose as president of the Congress. However, when⁣ Bose formed the Forward Bloc, he described it as a “leaky boat.”⁣
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He was responsible for the induction of K. Kamaraj and Muthuramalinga Thevar in the Indian National Congress. K. Kamaraj later became the President of Tamil Nadu Congress Committee and served as the Chief Minister of Madras from 1954 to 1962 is believed to be his greatest find.⁣
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He had an extensive knowledge of Hindu Dharmasastra. His book on “Mayne’s Hindu laws” is a much-acclaimed and well read book.⁣
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On 19 May 1941, Iyengar died in his house in Madras.⁣