Arunachalam Mahadeva

Arunachalam Mahadeva, KCMG (; 5 October 1885 – 15 April 1966) was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer, politician and diplomat. He served as Minister of Home Affairs (1942-1946) and High Commissioner to India (1948-1949).

Early life and family

Mahadeva was born on 5 October 1885 in Matara in southern Ceylon. He was the son of P. Arunachalam, a leading civil servant, and Sornambal. He was re-elected at the 1936 state council election and in 1942 he became Minister of Home Affairs.

Mahadeva was one of the founding members of the United National Party (UNP) and served as one of its vice-presidents and secretary. He stood as the UNP candidate for Jaffna at the 1947 parliamentary election but was defeated by the All Ceylon Tamil Congress leader G. G. Ponnambalam. Mahadeva was Ceylonese High Commissioner to India from 1948 to 1949.

Mahadeva was knighted in the 1949 New Year Honours. He was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 1955 New Year Honours. He was a member of the Public Service Commission from 1950 to 1957. Mahadeva devoted his retirement to cultural and religious affairs. He was a senior trustee of the Sri Ponnambala Vaneswara Temple at Sea Street in Kochchikade, built by his paternal grandfather A. Ponnambalam and rebuilt by his uncle P. Ramanathan. He was chief trustee of the Sri Arunachaleswarar Temple at Mutwal, built by his parents. He was patron of the Colombo Vivekananda Society, the Jaffna Saiva Paripalana Sabai and the Colombo North Hindu Paripalana Sabai. Mahadeva died on 8 June 1969.

Electoral history + Electoral history of Arunachalam MahadevaElectionConstituencyPartyVotesResult 1924 legislative council Western Province Tamil Elected 1934 state council by Jaffna Elected 1936 state council Jaffna Elected 1947 parliamentary Jaffna UNP Not elected

Footnotes