The park which nursed the freedom movement in Mysore

One of the most famous temples of Mysore is the Raghavendra Swamy Matha at Subbarayana Kere off  Chamaraja Double Road.

The area was a tank as the name Subbarayana Kere itself suggest. But this was several decades ago. The Amble Anniah Pandit Park was part of the place where the tank was situated.

Today, the tank has vanished and there is no trace of the once huge water body that the water body was. The Wodeyar Kings of Mysore had developed the water body and constructed steps leading to the tank as there were several temples around it.

However, over a period of time, the Kere fell into disuse and it was breached several decades ago. It had water till 1910.

The Subbaraya Kere has given way to a park which has some big trees in a green space called Amble Anaiah park. Though Subbarayana Kere and Amble Anaiah Park evokes instant recognition of the locality, few Mysoreans remember the two names behind the lake and the park.

Subbaraya was one of the teachers of Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar (1794-1868). He taught Bhagawatha to the young Prince or rather King and, hence, got the name Bhagawath Subbaraya.

A grateful King, who wanted the name of his teacher to be remembered for posterity, named the lake as Subbarayaba Kere. Incidentally, Subbaraya happens to be the great great grandfather of Cricketeer, B S. Chandrashekar, the legendary leg spinner.

Amble Annaiah also known as Amble Anaiah Pandit was a member of the Mysore Representative Assembly.

Amble Annaiah along with other members M. Venkatakrishnaiya and had confronted the then Dewan of Mysore, Sir M . Visvesvaraiah, about entire families in Mysore that were wiped out due to the influenza epidemic that struck the kingdom in 1918.

The epidemic had reportedly claimed lakhs of lives and the administration of Dewan Visvesvaraya faced these angry members at the Dasara session of the Mysore Representative Assembly.

Amble Anaiah Pandit had castigated the Dewan for the shortage of medicines, movement of people from villages and towns where there was no treatment and the acute shortage of both allopathic and indigenous doctors.

Very, soon, Subbarayanakere and the neighbouring Anathalaya became the cradle of Freedom Movement in Mysore. Mahatma Gandhi came and gave a speech ere as did many other stalwarts. People gathered in large numbers to listen to these speeches.

Leaders like Agaram Rangaiah, Tagadur Ramachandra Rao, M N Jois, Bhashyam gave speeches.

By the way, though the entire country celebrated Independence on August 15, 1947,  it was subdued in the then princely state of Mysore. When the Tricolour was unfurled publicly, it was at this very park and that too in early September 1947.

The park was the venue where the Mysore Chalo agitation, the last phase of the freedom movement, was declared to be over with Mysore Maharaja Jayachamaraja Wadiyar accepting the demands of the protestors to install a responsible government.

History has it that at the start of the `Mysore Chalo' agitation on September 3,1947, nationalists hoisted the national flag publicly for the first time at Subbarayanakere. But police intervened later and removed it. But as the agitations intensified, the Maharaja agreed to install a responsive government, which was announced by K C Reddy at Subbarayanakere.

Today, or elected representatives and the Government are finding it difficult to maintain this park. Perhaps they would do so unfailingly if they have e a sense of history.