comments on avr

My father, Sri A. Shivashanker Rao, who will be completing 90 years in April 2012, lost his younger brother Sri A. Venkat Rao on 31st December. 2011.


Sri A. Venkat Rao had retired as Law Secretary of Government of Karnataka and settled in Mysore. His memories were published in “Star of Mysore” paper and the digital version is available in www.ourkarnataka.co/venkatrao/memoirs_judge.htm. Each of his memoirs, illustrates the high moral standard he has set for himself in his profession.


In the first article published here, (written after the demise of Sri A. Venkat Rao) Sri A. Shivasnanker Rao has expressed his feelings towards his younger brother. In the second article written by Sri A. Venkat rao in 1983, he has shared his feelings towards his elder brother. (This article is taken from the Kannada book, “Embattara Koilina Kalugalu”i.e.,“Grains at the Harvest at Eighties”). The mutual respect they have is extraordinary and touching.
- Addoor Krishna Rao, Mangalore
Venkat Rao, my younger brother, is no more


- A. Shivashanker Rao


The 31st of December 2011 was one of the saddest days of my life, with the demise of my brother A. Venkat Rao at Mysore. He was younger to me by four and half years.


On that day I had planned to participate in a function of the Communist Party in Mangalore. I was preparing for it when I heard from my son Krishna about the news of the death of my brother.


I was shocked. I am aged 89 years plus and already feeling fatigued but this news resulted in a severe mental stress. He was just 85 and so much younger but he preceded me in the race towards death.


I am proud of the family I belong and of my siblings but Venkat Rao is the one with whom I could exchange my inner most thoughts about my achievements and failures.


The others were all serious but more like the persons who advised but Venkat Rao was a jolly good fellow and a real companion. That is why I miss him and his companionship.


Venkat Rao was born on 10th November 1926 in the house we lived in West Masi Street in Tanjore. For seven years we lived in Tanjore and for six more years in Madras.


In Madras, we were in the Boy Scout movement in the Young India Boy Scouts in Mylapore. He studied in P.S. Highschool till fourth form when our father died. After that we continued our education in Mangalore.


In the Boy Scouts outfit there was a song which I learnt then and which often came to my mind though I had forgotten it long back. It was ‘He is a jolly good fellow” etc and this came back to my mind when I heard the news of his demise.


We were staying in the SKDB Hostel in Mangalore and he was called “Mani” by the doyen of the hostelmates Ramakrishna Bhat.


After he studied Law in Madras he was selected as a Magistrate by the Government. His appointment was in Kundapur and after that he served in Bantwal, Puttur, Udupi, Madikeri, Mysore and Kollegal. Then he was promoted as a Civil Judge and served in Mysore and Madikeri. There he was District Judge and then elevated as Law Secretary to Government of Karnataka, before he retired.


He had high opinion about me and my work in the Communist movement and later on when I retired and took to farming on our land assisting my mother and simultaneously working in the movement for the propagation of the green revolution. While building up a model farm at Addoor he always was my supporter.


I remember once when I visited his room where he was living in Mysore as a demonstrator I found from his roommates that he had gone home. The roommate asked me who I was and I had replied that I was a distant relative. I did not reveal that I was his brother as I was working underground with a warrant against me.


It seems that person had told Venkat Rao later “Your brother had come asking for you.” I asked Venkat Rao how that person knew me as his brother. Venkat Rao replied if I had been ashamed of you I would have kept it a secret. I am proud of you. Then why can’t I own up? This attitude of his made me proud and grateful towards him.


Again, another time when we brothers were together chit-chatting he expressed his opinion that throughout his career in the judicial service, he had not done anything to be ashamed of and that he could face anybody without a feeling of guilt.


That was Venkat Rao and one of the finest gentlemen that I had come across.


He was always jovial and eventhough he was much junior to me he was ailing for nearly three years – often getting into hospital for treatment. He didn’t inform me that and when I expressed that I was over 88 years age he assured me that I was much better than him. I didn’t realize that he was ailing. He was cheerful.


Hence no wonder that his demise was a shock and created a feeling of vacuum in me.


My Brother, Shankaranna


- A. Venkat Rao


In 1938, I was studying in Third form at P.S. Highschool in Madras. My brother Shankaranna was then studying in First year Intermediate class in Pachappa’s College, which was quite far off from our house. Hence he used to go the college in the morning and returning only in the evening. At the rate of three Annas per day for five days in week, he was being given Rupee one per week to have his midday meal. Few months after his admission to the college, he fell ill and during his said period of illness, my father happened to go to his room. To his shock, he found several detective novels and other novels with the name of my brother Shankar written on them on the bookshelf. My father wondered as to from where Shankaranna could have got money to buy so many books. On being questioned about the source of money to buy those books, Shankaranna revealed that he was saving one Anna per day and thereby saving six annas per week from out of one Rupee given to him and that with that money he has purchased several old books and some new books at Moore Market. Since my father was also in the habit of going to Moore Market and purchasing second hand Classics, he was very pleased with Shankaranna and declared that he (Shankaranna) will be the custodian of father’s library.


After my father’s death in 1939, both I and Shankaranna continued our studies in Mangalore. We were staying in the S.K.D.B. Hostel at Mangalore, where he came into contact with the students who were communists and he too became a communist. Since the Communist Party was banned, he became an underground worker. One day he told my mother that Sri Namboodaripad had donated all his assets to Communist Party and that therefore he wanted to sell his share on the properties and donate the same to the Communist Party. My mother was shocked and sought the advice of her cousin Sri Tumbe Krishna Rao, who was a leading Advocate. Sri Tumbe Krishna Rao however advised my mother not to accede to the request of Shankaranna and directed him to file a suit for partition, if he wanted his share. Incidentally, his share in the family property helped him, when he finally realized that revolution would take place in India as expected by him and he directed his thought to marry and settle down.


After his marriage, Shankaranna began to concentrate on scientific farming and being a voracious reader, he bought several books on agriculture and contributed to various magazines, world over. He had no bad habits except to spend his last pie on books and magazines, without any thought as to whether he would afford to buy them or not. In course of time, he acquired vast knowledge in agriculture and horticulture and built up quite a study circle of agriculture experts. With the result, most of the officers of the Agriculture Department knew him and respected him for his knowledge. After my retirement as Law Secretary to the Government of Karnataka in November 1981, I was invited to participate in various seminars arranged for agricultural officers in various districts of Karnataka, to discuss with them about the implementation of various laws relating to pesticides, fertilizers etc. In every such seminar attended by me I was asked by the officers as to whether I was related to Shankaranna, which made me proud of him.