Robert William d'Escourt Ashe was the Collector and District Governor of Tirunelveli District in Tamil Nadu during the British rule in India. Shortly after becoming the Tirunelveli District Collector, he was shot dead on a train by a young man named Vanchinathan. There are two stories in history about Robert Ashe being shot by Vanchinathan. One story tells Robert Ashe is good and another story tells Vancnhinathan is a freedom fighter. We need to look at both stories and insight to know the truth.
Birth and early life
Robert Ashe durai was born in Prosper, Ireland in 1872, the son of Isaac Ashe and Sarah Ashe. Robert's father was a psychiatrist who worked at a nearby psychiatric ward. He was shot and killed by a mentally ill patient there. Despite such a loss, Robert completed his schooling in Dublin without distracting himself from his studies. He then joined Dublin college in 1892.
Robert Ashe writes the ICS exam after graduating from college. He has mastered it and is coming to India for work.
Job in India
Robert Ashe's first job in India was in the state of Odisha where he worked for a while. He was later transferred to Chennai as a Special Officer, following which he served as the Deputy Governor of Vadaarcot. Having thus served in various capacities, Robert Ashe is appointed District Governor for the Tirunelveli District on the outskirts of South India. In 1910 he takes charge as the District Collector of Tirunelveli.
The work of Robert Ashe
As the District Collector of Tirunelveli, Robert Ashe had been carrying out orders given by the British East India Company (British Rulers). Whether he liked the orders given by Robert Ashe's superiors or not, he was forced to do so, and he kept their orders. In which a few orders of the British greatly offended the Indian people. Unfortunately, all of those commands were carried out by Robert Ashe with no other option.
Thus the Indian people throughout believed that all the orders passed against the Indians were fulfilled entirely by Robert Ashe. He was thus described as the greatest tyrant among the Indian people and in Indian history. But Robert was like an interloper toy there. He had only carried out the orders given to him. None of the commands he carried out in it were carried out for his own benefit or for his own enmity. This was misunderstood by the Indian people at that time and he was misunderstood.
Acts of Robert Ashe
Robert Ashe's act, which angered the Indian people, was the main reason for the collapse of V. O. Chidambaram Pillai's shipping company Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company (SSNC). He was the first founder of a shipping company in Tamil Nadu and India. There was a history of very sensitive Indians in the background of the story that started that shipping company.
Demolish of SSNC and imprison of V.O.C
SSNC was the first Indian-launched shipping company to compete with the British in tackling the atrocities committed by the British during British rule. The SSNC Shipping Company was abolished by the British for no valid reason, for the sole reason that it was an Indian-started shipping company. Robert Ashe, Unfortunately Chidambaram Pillai is Tirunelveli born.
Thus the whole task of dismantling him and his company was entrusted to Robert Ashe, the acting collector of that district. Since then several bogus cases have been filed against SSNC. And the concessions of the English shipping companies led to the destruction of the SSNC. Chidambaram Pillai was later sentenced to 40 years in prison. The command of these Englishmen was also carried out by Robert Ashe.
Treated everyone equally
Robert Ashe treated all Indian people equally and gave equal rights and dignity to all irrespective of caste. In particular, he treated the upper castes and lower castes equally in his office. His actions caused a great deal of resentment among the upper castes. Not only this, he made the downtrodden castes sit and eat on par with the upper castes in public ceremonies. But during that time the lower castes would sit on the ground and eat.
The downtrodden castes in Courtallam
At that time only Brahmins and the dominant caste were allowed to bathe in the court, i.e. the oppressed castes were forbidden to bathe by the dominant caste. The downtrodden castes complained against the matter to the Collector of Tirunelveli, Robert Ashe. It was Robert Ash who allowed the oppressed castes to bathe in the courtroom. He opposed the upper castes who blocked it and gave equal rights to the lower castes.
This act made the Brahmins very angry with Robert Ashe. But beyond all this Robert Ashe did one thing.
Childbirth of an oppressed caste woman
Robert Ashe has a habit of always going for a walk. His chariot would also slowly come behind him as he went for a walk. While Robert Ashe is walking, his driver slowly drives his chariot behind him. Thus one time while going for a walk in the early morning he heard the screams of a woman. That noise came from the area of the downtrodden residents.
Then Robert Ashe told his driver to go and investigate. His driver inquired and came to know that a woman in the downtrodden area was throbbing with labor pains. When Robert went there and inquired whether he had taken the woman to the hospital, the downtrodden people said that there was a residence of Brahmins on the way to the hospital so it was too late to go around the hospital.
Hearing this, Robert loaded the woman into his chariot, confronted the Brahmins through the residence of the Brahmins, admitted the woman to the hospital, and saved two lives. When Robert Ashe put the woman in his chariot and tried to cross the Brahmins' settlement, all the Brahmins came together and stopped it saying that we would not accept this oppressed caste woman coming into our colony.
He tried to explain the scenario to the Brahmins. But the Brahmins were not ready to hear anything about it so Robert Ashe drove his chariot against them and passed them.
Killed by Vanchinathan
Due to this particular act of Robert Ashe, the dominant and Brahmin caste people decided to take his life. The Brahmin people thus decided, choose Vanchinathan to complete the work. The 21-year-old said he was proud of himself and accepted the offer wholeheartedly.
Who is Vanchinathan
Vanchinathan Iyer was born in 1886 at Sengottai in Tirunelveli district to Raghupathi Iyer and Rukmini Ammal. He received his nursery education at the Sengottai. Inspired by the leaders of Subramaniam Siva, Bharathi, and V. Chidambaranar at an early age, he was very active in liberation. Thus he joined a movement called Bharat Mata Sangam at a young age. He was working for independence with the youth in that movement.
There he learned sniper training along with another Iyer. After training, he bought himself an automatic rifle. After training, he bought himself a machine gun. At the age of twenty-three he married Ponnammal. Vanchinathan belongs to the Brahmin race. Robert Ashe's action against the uppercast and Brahmin people angered him lot.
Assasination of Robert Ashe
Since the Brahmin people were so angry with Robert Ash that they decided to kill him. The job of assassinating Robert Ash was handed over to Vancinathan. Vanchinathan chose June 17, 1911 to assassinate Robert. That day Robert Ashe traveled with his family to Kodaikanal by train at Maniachchi railway station. Vanchinathan boarded the second train on the same train as Robert Ash.
When the train came to a stop, Vanchinathan, who was in the second class, went to the first class and reached where Robert was. When he saw Robert Ash, he took the gun he had hidden and stabbed Robert in the chest. Robert, who was drenched in blood, died on the way to the hospital. Vanchinathan, who killed Robert, got off the train and committed suicide shortly afterwards with his shotgun.
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