The Sheriff of Madras was an apolitical titular position of authority bestowed for one year on a prominent citizen of Madras. The post was abolished in 1998.
The position of Sheriff of Madras was created in the Madras Charter of 1726 which came into force on 17 August 1727. As the executive arm of the Jurisdiction the sheriff was sworn in for a period of one year to carry out such duties as the summoning of people to the High Court, the provision of jurors, the attaching and sealing of properties and, if required, the arranging of their auction. The sheriff had an office and staff and in the order of precedence ranked just below the mayor. From the mid-1800s the position lost its powers and responsibilities and became primarily ceremonial.
Mumbai (Bombay) and Kolkata (Calcutta) continue (2017) to maintain their similar posts.
Some Sheriffs of Madras
1727 August Nicholas Morse, first sheriff 1746-53 No Sheriffs 1770 Hon Edward Monckton 1776 Hon Basil Cochrane 1779 William Jackson 1805 John Oakes 1824 John Savage 1828 George Lys 1831 Patrick Grant 1843-45 John Bruce Norton 1845: John Findley McKennie 1846 Leonard Cooper, solicitor (died 1852) 1854 Captain Christopher Biden 1885-86 John Henry Taylor 1886, 1887 Rajah Sir Savilai Ramaswamy Mudaliar, 158th Sheriff of Madras and first Indian Sheriff 1888, 1889 Abel Joshua Higginbotham, bookseller 1892 Pundi Runganadha Mudaliar, writer, educationist and politician 1893 Cawasji Edulji Panday, first Parsi Sheriff 1896 Nawab Syed Muhammad Bahadur, first Muslim Sheriff 1909 December 7 - Rao Bahadur M. Venkatasawmy Naidu Garu Fort St. George Gazette, order no.666, No.49, page1310 dated 7 December 1909 1922 Muthiah Chettiar, banker 1924 December 20 to 1925 December 19 - Dewan Bahadur Saravana Bhavanandam Pillai, playwrightLaw Department order no.742 dated 1924 December 09,Published in Fort St. George Gazette, No.64, page1452 dated 9 December 1924 1925 December 20 - C.E.Wood Law Department Order no.838, dated 12 December 1925; Published in Fort St. George Gazette, dated 15 December 1925, No.50 Page2363 193n William Wallace Ladden, businessman 1933 Khan Bahadur Mohammed Musa Sait, businessman 1935 Ghulam Mohiuddin Khan Bahadur, 6th Prince of Arcot 1938 Ganapathi Agraharam Annadhurai Ayyar Natesan 1940 December 20 -Diwan Bahadur V. Shanmuga Mudaliyar Fort St. George Gazette, order no.1359 dated 1940 December 12, No.50, page1565 dated 17 December 1940 1949-50 R. Ramanathan Chettiar, member of Lok Sabha 1952 P.V.S. Vencatachellum, businessman 1955-56 R.E. Castell 1956-57 Mrs Mary Clubwala Jadhav 1960 C.S. Loganatha Mudhaliar, industrialist 1961 R.M. Dave, philanthropist and mayor 1964 T.S. Narayanaswami, industrialist 1967-1968 Maruthai Pillai, industrialist 1969-70 Anantharamakrishnan Sivasailam, industrialist 1973-74 A.M. Buhari, restaurateur 1974-75 Rangaswami Ramakrishnan 1978 A.B. Ananthakrishnan 1980-81 Dr.P.M.Rex Pinheiro. 1983 Sarojini Varadappan, social worker 1984-85 Nawab Muhammed Abdul Ali 1985-87 M. Saravanan (producer) 1988 Nawab Muhammed Abdul Ali 1989-91 Narayanaswami Srinivasan, industrialist 1992-93 Suresh Krishna, businessman 1997 K. Chockalingam, surgeon (last sheriff)
See also Sheriff of Mumbai Sheriff of Kolkata
References
External links Sheriffs from 1727 to 1800