Agent To South Africa
On 27 May 1927, at the behest of Mahatma Gandhi, Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India, appointed Srinivasa Sastri as India's first Agent to the Republic of South Africa. Srinivasa Sastri arrived in South Africa in June 1927 and served as Agent till January 1929.
Soon after taking over, Srinivasa Sastri successfully pressurized the South African government to withdraw Section 5 of the Immigration and Indian Relief (Further Provision) Bill which empowered South African immigration officers and boards to cancel registration certificates. Through his efforts, the Natal Commission for Indian Education was appointed on 17 November 1927. With Sastri's support and encouragement, dissidents of the Transvaal British Indian Association (TBIA) founded the Transvaal Indian Congress (TIC) on 18 December 1927. The TBIA later merged with the South African Indian Congress. Section 104 of the Liquor Bill prohibiting Indians from entering licensed premises was withdrawn. The Thornton Committee was established in 1928 to investigate the sanitary conditions of Indians in and around Durban.
During the early part of Sastri's tenure, a number of segregationary laws were passed targeting Indians and Indian immigrants in South Africa. The period also witnessed the establishment of a number of trade unions. Sastri campaigned against racial segregation of Indians and got the Class Area Bill segregating Indians withdrawn.
Sastri returned to India in January 1929 and was succeeded by Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu.
Read more about this topic: V. S. Srinivasa Sastri
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