Sir C. (Chettur) Sankaran Nair

Born on July 11, 1857, on the Malabar Coast, Sir C. Sankaran Nair became one of the most prominent Indian jurists and statesmen of his generation. He built his reputation as a lawyer in Madras, later serving as Advocate-General of Madras and then as a judge of the Madras High Court.

He was also active in public life beyond the courtroom. In 1897 he was elected president of the Indian National Congress, and later joined the Viceroy's Executive Council, where he handled education. His career shows how an Indian leader could work inside imperial institutions while still pushing for reform and speaking with unusual independence.

Nair is often remembered most vividly for his response to the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. He resigned from the Viceroy's Executive Council in protest, and his later book Gandhi and Anarchy added another layer to his public legacy by showing that he could disagree sharply even with fellow Indian leaders. That mix of courage, intellect, and unwillingness to follow any party line makes him a striking figure in modern Indian history.