Temples, universities and T. Nagar: the Raja of Panagal's lasting reforms
The Hindu Religious Endowments Act, introduced by the Justice government and passed in 1925, set the pattern for State oversight of temples that Tamil Nadu still follows. The same ministry left Andhra University, Annamalai University and a new neighbourhood in Madras.
P. Ramarayaningar, the Raja of Panagal, led the Madras Presidency's government from July 1921 to November 1926. Three of his ministry's decisions still shape Tamil Nadu.
Temples under public oversight
Explainer
The Madras Hindu Religious Endowments Bill set up public bodies to oversee the funds and administration of Hindu temples, many of which had been run by hereditary trustees with little accountability. Wikipedia's account of the party dates the Bill's introduction to 18 December 1922 and its passage to 1925; the biography of Ramarayaningar dates the first introduction to 1921.
The Bill provoked strong protests from members who saw it as State interference in religious affairs. According to Wikipedia's biography of Ramarayaningar, the Shankaracharya of Kanchi supported the Bill while expressing concern over some of its provisions.
The Act set the precedent for later Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments laws and for the department that administers thousands of temples in Tamil Nadu today. Debates about that department, from temple finances to the appointment of priests from all castes, continue a conversation that began in Panagal's council.
Two universities
Rivalry between Tamil and Telugu members of the party shaped higher education. When a proposal for an Andhra University was raised in 1921, Tamil members including C. Natesa Mudaliar opposed it. After a Tamil member, T. N. Sivagnanam Pillai, was brought into the ministry in 1923, the Andhra University Bill passed on 6 November 1925 with Tamil support. The university opened in 1926 with C. R. Reddy as its first vice-chancellor.
That in turn led to calls for a Tamil university. A committee chaired by Sivagnanam Pillai began work on 22 March 1926, and Annamalai University opened in 1929, named after Annamalai Chettiar, who provided a large endowment.
A new neighbourhood
Panagal's government implemented the Madras Town Planning Act of 1920. After the Long Tank on the city's western edge was drained in 1923, a residential colony was laid out next to the village of Mambalam. It was named Theagaroya Nagar, now T. Nagar, after the recently deceased P. Theagaraya Chetty, and centred on a park named after Panagal himself. Its streets were named after officials and party members, including Natesa Mudaliar and W. P. A. Soundarapandian Nadar.
Why it matters
Today T. Nagar is one of Chennai's busiest shopping districts, and few of the people who crowd its streets know why they carry the names they do. The neighbourhood is a reminder that the Justice ministries governed a city as well as a cause, and that their decisions on land, water and planning outlasted their politics.