Sam A. Sabapathy

Samuel Ariaretnam Sabapathy (8 September 1898 – 12 February 1964 ) was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer and the first Mayor of Jaffna.

Honourable
Sam A. Sabapathy
MMC
சாம் அ. சபாபதி
1st Mayor of Jaffna
In office
6 January 1949 – 31 December 1949
Succeeded byK. Ponnambalam
In office
11 January 1952 – 31 December 1955
Preceded byK. Ponnambalam
Succeeded byKadhi. M. A. M. M. Sulthan
Personal details
Born(1898-09-06)6 September 1898
Died12 February 1964(1964-02-12) (aged 65)
Alma materSt. John's College, Jaffna
ProfessionLawyer
EthnicityCeylon Tamil

Early life and family

Sabapathy was born on 8 September 1898.[1] He was the son of Kanagasabapathipillai from Varany and Annammah.[1] His brother S. Kulendran was Bishop of Jaffna.[1] Sabapathy was educated at St. John's College, Jaffna where he was head prefect, captain of the cricket team and member of the football team.[1]

Sabapathy married Kanakeswary, daughter of Nagalingam from Tholpuram.[1] They had a daughter (Padmini).[1]

Career

Sabapathy joined the legal profession after finishing his education, becoming a proctor specialising in criminal law.[1] He practised law in Jaffna.[1]

Sabapathy was elected to Jaffna Urban Council, serving as its chairman between 1937 and 1939.[1] Jaffna was given municipality status in 1949 and Sabapathy became the city's first mayor.[1][2] He is credited with creation of Jaffna Public Library, Subramaniam Park and Health Centre/Maternity Clinic.[1] Sabapathy laid the foundation stone for the library on 29 March 1953.[3][4]

Death

Sabapathy died on 12 February 1964.[1]

References
  1. Arumugam, S. (1997). Dictionary of Biography of the Tamils of Ceylon. pp. 169–170.
  2. "Past Mayors". Jaffna Municipal Council. Archived from the original on 18 October 2013.
  3. Thurairajah, V. S. (12 December 2002). "Jaffna Library rises from its ruins". Daily News (Sri Lanka). Archived from the original on 10 March 2007.
  4. Palakidnar, Ananth (5 December 2004). "No shoes please". Sunday Observer (Sri Lanka). Archived from the original on 17 February 2015.
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