The Hindu
The Hindu began as a weekly publication on the 20th of September 1878 in Madras. Four law students and two teachers formed a group known then as the Triplicane Six. G. Subramania Iyer led this collective from Tanjore district while M. Veeraraghavacharyar lectured at Pachaiyappa's College. The paper transitioned to daily status in 1889 after eleven years of weekly circulation. By 1898, the partnership between Veeraraghavacharyar and Iyer dissolved when Iyer quit the enterprise. Veeraraghavacharyar remained sole owner until he appointed C. Karunakara Menon as editor. Circulation dropped to just 800 copies by the early 1900s before the sale occurred.
S. Kasturi Ranga Iyengar purchased The Hindu from its original owners in 1905. He served as legal adviser since 1895 before acquiring full control. The newspaper has remained under family ownership ever since that transaction date. Current directors are descendants of Iyengar collectively called the Kasturi family. They manage the holding company Kasturi & Sons Ltd through board positions. Nirmala Lakshman became Chairperson of the Board of THG in June 2023 for a three-year term. Her sister Malini Parthasarathy held the chair position during the 2020-2023 period. K Venugopal took over as Chairperson of Kasturi & Sons Ltd in September 2023.
Senior editorial roles have consistently stayed within the Iyengar family or their appointees except for roughly two years when S. Varadarajan led. Siddharth Varadarajan was appointed editor-in-chief on the 27th of June 2003 following N. Ram's departure. N. Ram himself served as editor-in-chief from 1977 until January 2011. G. Kasturi managed operations from 1965 to 1991 while his brother N. Ravi ran it from 1991 to 2003. M. Veeraraghavachariar edited the paper from its founding in 1878 until 1904. L. V. Navaneeth has held the managing director role since 2019. The newspaper launched Young World children's weekly in 1990 and Literally Review literary supplement in November 1991 under Lakshman's direction.
The Hindu published document-backed exclusives about the Bofors arms deal scandal during 1887-1888. Swedish Radio alleged bribes totaling $50 million were paid into Swiss bank accounts in April 1987. Chitra Subramaniam reported from Geneva as a part-time correspondent for the newspaper. Her work exposed secret payments made to Indian political leaders and Army officers. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi faced accusations of involvement in massive fraud according to editorial statements. The investigation included copies of original papers showing agreements behind the payments. This reporting set terms for national political discourse on the subject over six months. The scandal embarrassed the ruling Indian National Congress party significantly.
A succession battle erupted between Kasturi family members starting in 2011 when N. Ram resigned. Siddharth Varadarajan was appointed editor-in-chief by Ram despite opposition from N. Ravi. Dissident family members accused Varadarajan of being left-leaning while challenging his appointment before the board. Narasimhan Murali claimed Ram ran The Hindu like a banana republic with cronyism ruling operations. The board voted 6, 6 on reviewing the appointment before Ram cast a deciding vote in favor. Malini Parthasarathy later called Ram and other employees Stalinists during the dispute. She tweeted that management issues had surfaced including editorial direction concerns. The conflict highlighted tensions between tradition of family control versus separation of ownership and management principles.
The Hindu launched its website at thehindu.com in 1995 as India's first newspaper online presence. A beta version of the redesigned site went live on the 24th of June 2010 after initial launch in August 2009. The group introduced Tamil-language editions on the 16th of September 2013 with K. Ashokan as editor. Hindi-translated editorials began appearing on the website for the first time on the 15th of August 2022. The newspaper now publishes from 21 locations across 11 states of India. Young readers receive The Hindu in School edition distributed through schools starting April 2013. Workers could not reach the press building due to floods on the 2nd of December 2015 causing no print edition in Chennai market.
Narasimhan Murali alleged N. Ram ran The Hindu like a banana republic with vested interests ruling operations. On the 5th of January 2016, the newspaper reported the Sengol sceptre story was fiction based on manufactured lies. Malini Parthasarathy discussed fact-checking findings with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue S. Gurumurthy. The Union government claimed Jawaharlal Nehru received the sceptre from Lord Mountbatten but The Hindu contradicted this. Mr. K.C. Palaniswamy registered a complaint against N. Ram and eight directors regarding a 400-acre land grab scam worth nearly 3 billion rupees on the 25th of January 2012. Ram received anticipatory bail in that case. The Jayalalithaa government filed breach of privilege cases in 2003 which garnered journalistic community support.
Common questions
When did The Hindu newspaper begin publication in Madras?
The Hindu began as a weekly publication on the 20th of September 1878 in Madras. Four law students and two teachers formed a group known then as the Triplicane Six to launch this enterprise.
Who purchased The Hindu from its original owners in 1905?
S. Kasturi Ranga Iyengar purchased The Hindu from its original owners in 1905 after serving as legal adviser since 1895. He acquired full control and the newspaper has remained under family ownership ever since that transaction date.
What major political scandal did The Hindu expose during 1987-1988?
The Hindu published document-backed exclusives about the Bofors arms deal scandal during 1887-1888 involving bribes totaling $50 million paid into Swiss bank accounts. Chitra Subramaniam reported from Geneva exposing secret payments made to Indian political leaders and Army officers which implicated Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Which year did The Hindu launch its website at thehindu.com?
The Hindu launched its website at thehindu.com in 1995 as India's first newspaper online presence. A beta version of the redesigned site went live on the 24th of June 2010 after initial launch in August 2009.
When did Nirmala Lakshman become Chairperson of the Board of THG?
Nirmala Lakshman became Chairperson of the Board of THG in June 2023 for a three-year term. Her sister Malini Parthasarathy held the chair position during the 2020-2023 period before this transition.