Global Hindu Heritage Foundation is committed to transmit the richness of our culture to our children, make the proud of their history, inspire them to emulate the national heroes who sacrificed their life for the country and make them the model Hindus to work for the welfare of the humanity. One of the national heroes they learned about is Vanchinathan.
Vanchinathan: Flame of Patriotism
Once upon a time, there was a boy named Sankaran in our Tamil Nadu. He was very cultured, had great respect for his country and his traditions. He grew up listening to his elders and having good habits from a young age. Although his real name was Sankaran, history remembered him as Vanchinathan. When Vanchinathan grew up, he worked in the Travancore Forest Department.
In those days, our country was ruled by white people, that is, the British. They were plundering our country's wealth and treating our people as slaves. They wanted to destroy our Hindu religion and our traditions. Vanchinathan did not like this at all. His anger and pain were increasing day by day.
In particular, there was a white collector named Ashe. This Ashe was very wicked. He used to torture our people a lot. He used to suppress those who were fighting for freedom. At that time, a great leader named Chidambaram Pillai had set up a shipping company (Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company) for the people of our country. Ashe made many efforts to close that company. He troubled the workers. He unjustly sent Chidambaram Pillai to jail. These things hurt Vanchinathan a lot. "Something must be done about these people who are hurting our people so much!" Vanchinathan thought firmly in his mind.
Moreover, at that time, King George V of England was coming to our country. "Why should we welcome the king of those who see our country as slaves when he comes to our country? We should protest!" Vanchinathan thought. He combined these two to warn Ashe and protest the visit of King George V. He made a solid plan. He took gun training from a teacher named V.V.S. Iyer. He joined an organization called "Bharat Mata Sangam" and strengthened his goal.
It was June 17, 1911. That day, Collector Ashe was traveling in a train with his wife. The train reached Maniachi station. Vanchinathan was also in the same train. As soon as the train stopped, he went to the special coach where Ashe was sitting. Without any fear, he shot Ashe with the gun in his hand.
As soon as this incident happened, Vanchinathan knew that the police would arrest him. But, he was not afraid. Thinking, "My life is for this country!", he shot himself with the same gun and died on the spot. He was only 25 years old at that time! How young he was to sacrifice his life for the country!
Before Vanchinathan died, he kept a small letter in his pocket. In that letter, he wrote: "I offer my life as a small gift to my motherland. I alone am responsible for this deed I have done."
The letter further reads: "The white men from England are trying to invade our India and destroy our Sanatan Dharma. Every Indian should drive these white men out. We should bring independence to our country. Sanatan Dharma should be re-established. In this holy land, once ruled by great kings like Shri Ram, Shri Krishna and Chhatrapati Shivaji, they are trying to crown a man named George V, who eats beef. In our Hindu culture, cows are worshipped as mothers and are very sacred to them. It is an insult to our religion to crown such a man who eats beef in our country. Three thousand people have vowed to kill George V as soon as he sets foot in our country. Everyone in Hindustan should consider this their duty. I have done this to say that all those who want to enslave this great land will be doomed. Vande Mataram!"
In memory of this great sacrifice made by Vanchinathan, the name of the Maniachchi railway station was changed to Vanchinathan.
Attempts to distort history and our responsibility
Children, our great patriots like Vanchinathan risked their lives to bring about independence. But recently, some people are trying to deliberately distort this history. For example, in Palayamkottai, Tamil Nadu, members of an English church paid floral tributes to the grave of British Collector Ashe. They are wrongly saying that Ashe was a very good officer, that the British government did a lot of good for our country, and that people like Vanchinathan are racists.
The important thing we need to know is that some of those who are making such wrong statements are converts. Converting religions creates a wrong ideology for some people that British rule is good and that India's freedom struggle is not necessary. This leads to ignoring our Sanatana Dharma and the culture of the country. They are deliberately distorting our history and belittling the sacrifices of our real heroes. This is misleading our youth.
What is our responsibility?
It is the responsibility of all of us to know the true history of the sacrifices made by many for the freedom of our country. The sacrifice of someone like Vanchinathan was not just the killing of a person, it was a great struggle for the freedom of India and for the protection of Sanatan Dharma. Despite such false propaganda, the sacrifices of true patriots like Vanchinathan will continue to inspire generations.
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