Swadeshabhimani (newspaper)


Swadeshabhimani was a newspaper published in Travancore, which was banned and confiscated by the Government of Travancore in 1910 due to its criticisms against the government and the Diwan of Travancore, P. Rajagopalachari.

History

Vakkom Muhammed Abdul Khadir Moulavi alias Vakkom Moulavi founded the weekly newspaper on 19 January 1905, to spearhead the fight against corruption and to struggle for the democratic rights of the people in Travancore. He managed to import, directly from England, an automatic flatbed printing press, the latest type then available. The press operated from Anjuthengu , a British colony at the time directly ruled by British East India Company.
C P Govinda Pillai was the editor of before Ramakrishna Pillai took over as the editor in January 1906. Ramakrishna Pillai and his family had to shift to Vakkom in Chirayinkil Taluk where the newspaper office and the printing press were located.
In July 1907, both the newspaper office and the family moved to Thiruvananthapuram. Though Vakkom Moulavi was still the proprietor, Ramakrishna had been given total freedom in the running of the newspaper by Moulavi. Although there were never any legal or financial contracts between the two, Moulavi provided all the financial aid to set up the press.
On 26 September 1910, the newspaper and the printing press were sealed and confiscated by the British Police. Ramakrishna Pillai was arrested and banished from Travancore to Thirunelveli in Madras Province of British Raj.
In 1957, after the Independence of India, the Government of Kerala returned the press to Moulavi's family and son Abdul Kadar. On 26 January 1968, the then Chief Minister of Kerala, E. M. S. Namboodiripad, presented it to the legal heirs of Maulavi Abdul Qadir at a public meeting, 36 years after his death.