Ram Charitra

Mr Ram Charitra, Accountant and Tax Consultant, was born in Nabukavesi, Navua District, Fiji, on 16 November 1912. From humble beginnings, he rose to be the first Senior Assessor in the Department of Inland Revenue of British Crown Colony of Fiji, who was of Indian origin. He excelled as a Tax Consultant and built up an impressive property portfolio ranging from shops to residential apartments.
Parents
His father came to Fiji as a young man in search of opportunities. From his birthplace in Rajasthan, India, he travelled to Meerut (UP, India) with some family members in search of work but although the family members settled there, he was unhappy and when an opportunity arose, he travelled into the unknown world of the British Colony of Fiji. Ram Charitra's mother was born in Fiji, and was the only daughter of Haripal Thakur, immigrant indentured labourer who arrived in Fiji under the indian indenture system
and settled down in Navua's cane growing district at the end of his contract. He was the third child, an elder brother had died in a flu epidemic, and he was left with an older surviving sister.
Education
He spent his early formative years in the Navua area where his parents had a general store which served the small Indian settlement, in Nabukavesi, engaged mainly in sugar cane farming. Until Sadhu Vashist Muni opened his school, in Natitonitoni, there were no schools in the area to which this young, bright child could be sent.He was enlisted in this new school as soon as they were able to do so; and he was happy here and made good progress; but, like his father, he was restless, and when he could not continue with further education there, and with the economic situation deteriorating rapidly, the parents and the children decided it was time to move on.
Determined that he was not going to continue in the family business, nor was he going to spend his time as a cowherd in his spare time, he decided to better himself and progress in life, in ways other than being a shop-keeper or a farmer.
The effects of sugar mill closure
The family left Navua which, until recently, was a sugar cane producing area. As the growing, distributing and milling of the sugar was being rationalised, particularly on grounds of extracapacity, the sugar mills in Fiji were closing and the Navua sugar mill closed in 1922, and the family decided to move on, and in 1925, they arrived in Muanivatu, near Suva, the capital of Fiji. Navua town continued to decline but the family's move proved decisive and, as it turned out, the correct one.
A professional

He was sent to the Methodist Mission School and was under Miss CJ Watson until 1926. Showing promise, his parents decided to send him to Seventh Day Adventist School where he was taught by Mr Burns and Mr GM Masters. Then in 1929, he was moved to the Samabula Government School which was closer to home. The school was headed by the much respected Mr Sewak Masih; and under his tutelage, he obtained his School Leaving Certificate, and a Scholarship to the Teachers Training Institution in Davuilevu, near Naursori, in 1931.
He studied Book-Keeping and Income Tax laws and joined the legal firms of Ellis Munro Warren & Leys, Suva, in 1937. He was admitted as a Fellow of the Society of Commercial Accountants, England, and as a Fellow of the Association of Practising Accountants, of New South Wales, Australia. When the Institute of Fiji Accountants was set up, he was admitted as a Member.
Progress as a civil servant
His work at the law firm attracted the attention of the then Commissioner of Inland Revenue, Mr Watson who invited him to make an application for a vacancy in the department, as a Tax Inspector. He joined the department in March 1948 but his progress in the department was not always a smooth ride, but managed despite many odds, to be a Senior Assessor, a post which was previously reserved for overseas expatriates.
When he was an Assessor in the Inland Revenue, he was seconded to the Treasury Department as an Assistant Accountant, where he exposed inefficiencies and errors in the department and despite his submissions, particularly in regard to the Widows' and Orphans' Fund, the Colonial Secretary decided to maintain the status quo. In January, 1959, on a question of interpretation of legal wording of section 11, cap 53 of the Provident Fund Ordinance, the Attorney General agreed with Ram Charitra's interpretation (this did not concur with the Head of Department's interpretation), but he was advised to "..accept the direction of the Head of your Department and that you are not at liberty to go over his head even if, in your opinion, the decision is an incorrect one..." (Ref: CP 2706 of 6/4/1959)
A property developer
Carnarvon Building was built in 1952 in a prime site in Suva, and it was a part of his large property portfolio which included apartments, shops, and land, all within the Suva hinterland. All large developments were undertaken by his dear friend Sathi Narain(later Sir). Carnarvon Building was both men's major work. Later,they acquired and developed properties in Amy Street/High Street, Matanitabua Street,and acquired properties in Gordon Street, Suva, in partnership.
Political adviser
Never actively involved in politics, he nevertheless played important roles in the 1940s and 1950s in discussing and advising on policies and strategies with the Hon. Pandit Vishnu Deo, then later in the 1960s he advised the Federation of cane growers with Mr AD Patel and Mr SM Koya in their submissions to the various commissions set up by the Government to enquire into the sugar cane industry in the Colony.
In retirement
He retired from the Civil Service in 1962 on a pension from the Colonial Government.
In 1963, he set up in private practice as "Charitra Accounting & Taxation Service" from his offices in Carnarvon Building, Suva. He was pre-eminent in Taxation and his advice was sought by such notable lawyers as Mr Said Hassan, Mr AD Patel, Mr Sadique M Koya, and many others.
When Fiji Islands gained its independence from Great Britain in October, 1970, Ram Charitra was the Leader of Opposition's Nominee and sat as Chairman of the Indian Entertainment Section. He was recipient of the Fiji Independence Day Medal.
Soon after this, he settled down in his second retirement phase, but being a workaholic, he never stopped working. On the 7 November, he put his books down at 11pm for the last time; and passed away peacefully on 8 November 1994.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu