Kumaraswami Kamaraj was an Indian independence activist and politician known for his simplicity and integrity. The Bharat Ratna was posthumously bestowed on him in 1976.
He served as the Chief Minister of Madras State (Tamil Nadu) & Member of Parliament. He played a major role in developing the infrastructure of the Madras state and worked to improve the quality of life of the needy and the disadvantaged.
Kamaraj strived to eradicate illiteracy by introducing free and compulsory education up to the eleventh standard. He introduced the Midday Meal Scheme to provide at least one meal per day to the lakhs of poor school children. He introduced free school uniforms to weed out caste, creed and class distinctions among young minds. Kamaraj and Bishnuram Medhi (Governor) took efforts to establish IIT Madras in 1959.
He was widely acknowledged as the "Kingmaker" in Indian politics during the 1960s. He was responsible for the elevation of Lal Bahadur Shastri to the position of Prime Minister of India after Nehru's death and Indira Gandhi after Shastri's death.
He was the founder and the president of the Indian National Congress (Organisation) or Congress (O), a political party formed when the Congress party split following the expulsion of Indira Gandhi.
In 1914, Kamaraj dropped out of school to support his mother after his father died. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre was the decisive turning point in his life - he decided to fight for national freedom and to bring an end to foreign rule. In 1920, when he was 18, he became active in politics.
He did not marry, did not own any property, refused special privileges and was never tempted by power.