5
Unveiling of the Statue
of Andhra Kesari Shri Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu
LARRDIS*
Andhra Kesari Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu was one of the outstanding
leaders in the nation’s socio-political firmament. A multi-faceted personality,
he was a valiant freedom fighter, eminent parliamentarian, erudite scholar and
able administrator. By his limitless courage, infinite wisdom and inimitable
pragmatism, he endeared himself to the people of the country. As a Minister in
the Congress Government which came to power in the composite Madras State in
1937, and, later, as the Chief Minister of this composite State, he pioneered a
spate of revolutionary reforms inspired by the Gandhian constructive
programmes. Shri Prakasam was also a great champion of the cause of a separate
State of Andhra, a dream which was realized in due course. As the first Chief
Minister of Andhra, Shri Prakasam established an efficient, responsive,
transparent and people-friendly administration.
On 5 May 2000, a statue of Andhra
Kesari Shri Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu was unveiled in the precincts of
Parliament House by the President of India, Shri K.R. Narayanan. The statue of
Shri T. Prakasam, sculpted by the eminent sculptor, D. Sankar and Brothers and
made of bronze, is 7'8" in height and is placed on a 9" platform. The
statue was donated by the Government of Andhra Pradesh. The ceremony was
attended by the Vice-President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Krishan
Kant; the Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee; the Speaker, Lok Sabha,
Shri G.M.C. Balayogi; the Home Minister, Shri L.K. Advani; the Leader of the
Opposition in the Rajya Sabha,
Dr. Manmohan Singh; and Members of Parliament and other eminent personalities.
To mark the occasion, the Lok
Sabha Secretariat also brought out a publication titled ‘Andhra Kesari Tanguturi
Prakasam’ which carried messages from several dignitaries, a profile of Shri
Prakasam, his views on various aspects of our national life and some select
photographs.
Exhibition On
“Life and Times of Andhra
Kesari Tanguturi Prakasam”
The day-long Exhibition titled
“Life and Times of Andhra Kesari Tanguturi Prakasam” depicted the life
and times of Shri Prakasam with the help of photographs, sketches, poems,
write-ups and press headlines. It particularly highlighted the role played by
Shri Prakasam as Chief Minister of the composite Madras Province and later as
the first Chief Minister of Andhra.
The panorama of exhibits
included an oil painting of Shri Prakasam by Shri S.N. Chamkur and photographs
of his early life, education and family. One of the exhibits depicted Shri
Prakasam baring his chest to the British police during the anti-Simon
Commission agitation in 1928 daring them to shoot at him.
The exhibits further traced the
role played by Shri Prakasam in the Constituent Assembly and in evolving the
Panchayati Raj institutions for enriching the age-old democratic set-up in
India. The Exhibition also displayed the views of Shri Prakasam in the form of
quotations from his speeches in the Constituent Assembly on varied subjects.
The Exhibition was set up by the Parliamentary Museum and Archives (PMA) in collaboration with the Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity (DAVP), National Archives, and the Prakasam Institute of Development Studies, Hyderabad.
* Parliament Library and Reference, Research, Documentation and Information Service