T. R. A. Thumboo Chetty

Trichinopoly Rayalu Arakiaswamy Thumboo Chetty (April 1837 – 19 June 1907) was an Indian lawyer, administrator, and statesman who was the acting dewan of Mysore and later the first Indian-born chief judge of the Chief Court of Mysore (now High Court of Karnataka).

Family Thumboo Chetty was born in April 1837 to a Catholic family, apparently in Trichinopoly, to Desayi Royalu Chetty Garu, a chief bookkeeper in Griffith's and Co., in a mercantile firm, and Catherine Ummah, a woman of piety, mildness, courtesy and serenity. Thumboo Chetty's forebear, Gowri Koolapathi Kampal Naidu from Kottapalayam, originally practiced Hinduism. Kampal Naidu marked the initiation of Catholicism within the family when he converted to the Catholic faith through the efforts of Saint Francis Xavier in 1545. This historical event is documented in the initial Baptism Register of the Kottapalayam Church at Mettur in Salem District.

Thumboo Chetty was the sixth child in his family; he had three elder sisters and one younger brother and a sister, all of whom lived long enough to see his progress and advancement. He spent his early life in Black Town (now known as George Town), Madras.

Thumboo Chetty married Rajamma, daughter of Ponnoo Chettiar and Sinnammalle, Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Refuge, Pophan’s Broadway, Madras. The couple had four sons: T. Rayaloo Chetty, T. Dharma Raj Chetty, T. Sathya Raj Chetty, and T. Thumboo Chetty; and four daughters: Amarapatty Amma, Sathiavathy Amma, Dhanavathy Amma, and Baghavathy Amma. Thumboo Chetty's granddaughter (daughter of T. Thumboo Chetty) was the world-renowned violinist Philomena Thumboochetty.

Public office in Mysore Kingdom Sir K. Seshadri Iyer was the dewan of Maharaja Chamaraja Wadiyar. During his premiership, Thumboo Chetty officiated for him on three occasions, in 1890, later in 1892, and 1893.