Mountbatten. C.Rajagopalachari. Rajendra Prasad.
  • C.Rajagopalachari Lord Mountbatten was the last Viceroy of India. His experience in the region and in particular his perceived Labour sympathies at that time led to British Prime Minister Clement Attlee appointing him Viceroy of India after the war. In his position as Viceroy, Mountbatten oversaw the granting of independence to the Partitioned India as India and Pakistan.

    With his strong friendship with Jawaharlal Nehru and amicable relations with Mahatma Gandhi but inability to work his famous charm on Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Mountbatten quickly gave up hope of salvaging a unified independent India, becoming resigned to Partition into a post-Independence Pakistan and India.

    After Independence, he remained in New Delhi for ten months, serving as the first of independent India's and Pakistan's Governors General until June 1948. In 1950, the Constitution of India came into effect. The monarchy being abolished in 1950 and the office of Governor General of India replaced with a non-executive presidency.

    Rajaji has the unique distinction of being the only Indian Governor-General. Rajaji had served as Acting Governor-General during November,1947, when Lord Mountbatten was in England to attend Prince Phillip's marriage to then-Princess Elizabeth.

    Rajaji led a very simple life in the viceregal palace. It is known that he used to wash his own clothes. During this time a friend of Rajaji came to visit him. He was surprised to see the acting Governor-General Rajaji polishing his own shoes and asked why a governal general should polish his shoes. Rajaji replied sarcastically "Yes, indeed it is my own shoe and whose shoe do you polish?".

    Rajaji as Governor-General, Jawaharlal Nehru, as Prime Minister and Sardar Patel, as Deputy Prime Minister, constituted an impressive triumvirate which ruled the country from 1948 - 1950.

    By the end of the year 1949, it was assumed that Rajaji, already Governor-General, was going to continue as President. But due to the internal politics of the Congress mainly between the supporters of Nehru and Patel, Rajendra Prasad was also taken up as a possible candidate.

    Congressmen who were opponents of Rajaji used his non-participation in the Quit India Movement as a weapon against him. Rajaji immediately called Rajendra Prasad and told him that as he did not want the country to witness a conflict between senior leaders so soon after the death of Mahatma Gandhi, he would withdraw from the Presidential Contest. Thus Rajendra Prasad became the President.