Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo, King of Bastar (5 June 1929 – 25 March 1966) was the 20th Maharaja of Bastar State.[1][2][3] He represented the Jagdalpur Assembly constituency in the undivided Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly following the general election of 1957.[4]
His Highness Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo | |
|---|---|
| King of Bastar | |
| In office 28 October 1936 – 25 March 1966 | |
| Preceded by | Prafulla Kumari Devi (as queen) |
| Succeeded by | Vijay Chandra Bhanj Deo (as titular king) |
| Member of Legislative Assembly, Madhya Pradesh | |
| In office 25 February 1957 – 19 February 1962 Serving with Derhaprasad | |
| Preceded by | Doomer Vidyanath |
| Succeeded by | Chaitu Mahra |
| Constituency | Jagdalpur |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 June 1929 Jagdalpur, Bastar State, British India (present-day Jagdalpur, Chhattisgarh) |
| Died | 25 March 1966 Jagdalpur Palace, Madhya Pradesh (present-day Chhattisgarh) |
| Manner of death | Assassination |
| Nationality | British Indian (1929-1947) Indian (1947-1966) |
| Spouse | Rajkumari Shubhraj Kumari of Patan (m. 1961-1966) |
| Parent(s) | Prafulla Kumari Devi Chandra Bhanj Deo |
He was the last ruler of Bastar state, which was established by a branch of the Kakatiya dynasty. The Bastar region was part of greater Kalinga kingdom and an extension of Trikalinga. The Kakatiya dynasty adopted the "Dev" or "Deo" surname in line with other feudal kings of Odisha under the Gajapati Kingdom in the medieval period.
He was shot in 1966 after a long career championing the rights of his subjects and in particular those of tribal peoples.
Early life and Education
editPravir was born on 25 June 1929 and was educated at Rajkumar College, Raipur.
Personal life
editHe was married to Rajkumari Shubhraj Kumari of Patan, Rajasthan, daughter of Raj Rishi Rao Saheb Udaya Singhji and Rani Trilokya Raj Lakshmi of Patan, on 4 July 1961.
As King of Bastar
editHe succeeded to the throne on 28 October 1936. He was immensely popular among his people, as he took up the cause of the local tribal people, and provided political leadership against exploitation of natural resources of the region and corruption in land reforms.
Assassination
editOn 25 March 1966 he was killed, along with many of his tribal followers, when police opened fire on the King and a group of supporters at his palace in Jagdalpur.[5][6] The official death toll was twelve, including the king, with twenty wounded; the police had fired sixty one rounds. The district magistrate was reported as stating that Pravir Chandra was leading armed adivasis against the police, who fired in self-defence.[6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Bastar (state) - History and Genealogy Queensland University.
- ^ Bastar - History The Imperial Gazetteer of India, 1908. v. 7, p. 122.
- ^ History of Bastar Archived 9 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine Bastar district official website.
- ^ "General Elections of MP 1957" (PDF). Election Commission Of India. 2004.
- ^ The Indian Princes and Their States, by Barbara N. Ramusack. Published by Cambridge University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-521-26727-7. Page 210.
- ^ a b A king mulls over two strategies, The Hindu, 25 April 2013. (Story about Pravir Chandra's great-nephew.)
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