On January 26, 1965, Republic Day, in pursuance of Article 343 of the Constitution, became the official language of India. The South, and Tamilnad (i.e., Madras State) particularly, long opposed to the imposition of Hindi, reacted predictably in the preceding weeks. Rajaji (C. Rajagopalachari), former Congress Chief Minister of Madras and now leader of the conservative Swatantra Party, convened the Madras State Anti-Hindi Conference in Tiruchirappalli on January 17. With the podium graced by two of Tamilnad's most powerful mill owners, Thiagaraja Chettiar and G. D. Naidu, Rajaji lashed out against the government's language policy and proclaimed the determination of the Tamil people to resist as an unwise, unjust and discriminatory tyranny. The Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK) Party, the self-proclaimed vanguard of Tamil nationalism, designated January 26 as day of mourning. The cries against Hindi imperialism were long familiar, but the tragedy which was to follow was one for which the government and the nation were wholly unprepared. The students, who feared that the change-over to would inflict severe disabilities on non-Hindi speakers, became increasingly anxious about their own futures. Since the most highly coveted jobs are in the central government services, the students saw the change from English to as the language of administration as a life and death matter. Their mother tongue was Tamil. England was the medium of instruction in the colleges and universities. Would they now be confronted by government service examinations in what was for them foreign language and in competition with those for whom it was mother tongue? The Chief Minister of Madras, Bhaktavatsalam, threatened the students with stern action against their participation in politics, and warned that agitations on Republic Day would not be tolerated. In compliance with the demand that the 26th not be dishonored, the students throughout Tamilnad decided to demonstrate their opposition to one day earlier, on January 25. In Madurai, as throughout the State, the students began painting posters and signs. Down with Hindi. Hindi never, English ever. Though serious in purpose, the mood was light. On the morning of the 25th, the students of one of Madurai's colleges assembled in front of the college's gate to burn huge effigy of the demoness and to begin their march through the city. No one expected trouble. As the students marched through the streets of Madurai, they were joined