C. H. Mohammed Koya
Cheriyan Kandi Muhammad Koya (15 July 1927–28 September 1983), known as C. H. Muhammad Koya, was an Indian politician who served as the Minister of Education in various Kerala Governments from 1967 to 1973 and from 1977 to 1979.[2] He also briefly led the cabinet as the eighth Chief Minister of Kerala from 12 October to 1 December 1979.[2][3] Koya was the first Indian Union Muslim League member to lead a state in independent India.[4]
C. H. Mohammad Koya | |
|---|---|
| 2nd Deputy Chief Minister of Kerala | |
| In office 24 May 1982 – 28 September 1983 | |
| Chief Minister | K. Karunakaran |
| Preceded by | Office Vacant |
| Succeeded by | K. Avukader Kutty Naha |
| In office 28 December 1981 – 17 March 1982 | |
| Chief Minister | K. Karunakaran |
| Preceded by | R. Sankar |
| Succeeded by | Office Vacant |
| 8th Chief Minister of Kerala | |
| In office 12 October 1979 – 1 December 1979 | |
| Preceded by | P. K. Vasudevan Nair |
| Succeeded by | President's rule |
| Speaker of the Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 9 June 1961 – 11 November 1961 | |
| Preceded by | K. M. Seethi Sahib |
| Succeeded by | Alexander Parambithara |
| Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha | |
| In office 25 February 1962 – 21 February 1967 | |
| Preceded by | K. P. Kutti Krishnan Nair |
| Succeeded by | Ebrahim Sulaiman Sait |
| Constituency | Kozhikode |
| In office 5 February 1973 – 20 March 1977 | |
| Preceded by | Muhammad Ismail |
| Succeeded by | Ebrahim Sulaiman Sait |
| Constituency | Manjeri |
| Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 5 April 1957 – 6 March 1962 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | C. Muhammed Kutty |
| Constituency | Tanur |
| In office 6 March 1967 – 17 September 1970 | |
| Preceded by | P. Abdul Majeed |
| Succeeded by | M. Moideen Kutty |
| Constituency | Mankada |
| In office 17 September 1970 – 5 February 1973 | |
| Preceded by | Sayed Ummer Bafakhy |
| Succeeded by | P. Seethi Haji |
| Constituency | Kondotty |
| In office 25 March 1977 – 3 January 1980 | |
| Preceded by | U. A. Beeran |
| Succeeded by | U. A. Beeran |
| Constituency | Malappuram |
| In office 26 March 1980 – 28 September 1983 | |
| Preceded by | Abdulla Kurikkal |
| Succeeded by | Ishaq Kurikkal |
| Constituency | Manjeri |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 July 1927 Atholi, Madras Presidency, British India |
| Died | 28 September 1983 (aged 56) Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India |
| Political party | Indian Union Muslim League |
| Spouse | K. K. Amina (married on 1 June 1950)[1] |
| Children | Two daughters and a son (M. K. Muneer) |
As of 2 November, 2007 Source: | |
As the Minister of Education, Koya championed the progress of the education of backward classes in northern Kerala.[3] He also served as the Home Minister (1969–73) and the Deputy Chief Minister of Kerala (1981–83).[2]
Life and career
Cheriyan Kandi Muhammad Koya was born in 1927 at Atholi in northern Kerala, to Payampunathil Ali and Mariyumma.[2][5] Koya floated the Muslim Students Federation, the youth wing of the All-India Muslim League, in Malabar District while he was at Zamorin's College, Calicut and later helped to organize an admirable reception for the prominent Muslim League leader Liaquat Ali Khan at Calicut (1945).[3] He joined the Chandrika newspaper, the official organ of the Muslim League, in 1946.[6][3][2][7]
Koya was first elected to the Kerala Assembly in the 1957 legislative elections. He went on to hold several key Kerala cabinet posts (Minister for Education, Deputy Chief Minister, Home Minister, and Minister for Finance). He served under both Indian National Congress and Communist Party of India Chief Ministers (E. M. S. Namboodiripad, C. Achutha Menon, K. Karunakaran, A. K. Antony, and P. K. Vasudevan Nair).[3][2] He was elected to the Lok Sabha in the 1962 (1962–67) and in 1973 (1973–77,[3] by-elections, replacing recently deceased M. Muhammed Ismail).[8]
He was a Member in the Kerala University Senate and served as Chairman, Governing Body, REC, Calicut.[8]
Koya died on 28 September, 1983 while serving as the Deputy Chief Minister of Kerala.[8] He was aged just 56 at the time of his death.[8]
Legacy
"Young men like C. H. Muhammad Koya realized that violent revolt promised nothing for them [the Kerala Muslims]. Electoral politics, on the other hand, might offer a great deal."
— Robin Jeffrey (historian)[6]
Koya was known his eloquent oratory and was described by scholar R. E. Miller as "grassroots star of the Mappila community" and the "ranking hero of Muslim youth" in Kerala.[3] He acted as a "bridge-builder" among various social and religious groups of Kerala.[3] Koya is remembered for his "spirited" reply to Jawaharlal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India when the latter publicly criticized Indian Union Muslim League as "a dead horse" at Calicut (1955).[3]
As the Minister of Education, Koya championed the progress of the Mappila community in secular education.[3] During Koya's tenure as the Minister of Education, the University of Calicut was established in northern Kerala.[3] He also advocated higher standards in the 'Arabic Colleges'.[a][3]
Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly
Source: Kerala Legislative Assembly (profile)
- 1st Assembly (1957–59) – Tanur
- 2nd Assembly (1960–64) – Tanur (resigned on 6 March 1962)[8]
- 3rd Assembly (1967–70) – Mankada
- 4th Assembly (1970–77) – Kondotty (resigned on 5 February 1973)[8]
- 5th Assembly (1977–79) – Malappuram
- 6th Assembly (1980–82) – Manjeri
- 7th Assembly (1982–87) – Manjeri (died on 28 September, 1983)
In Kerala council of ministers
| Ministry | Office | Term of office | Source(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pattom Ministry | Speaker (independent) | 09-06-1961 to 10-11-1961 | [2][8] |
| 2nd E. M. S. Ministry | Minister for Education | 06-03-1967 to 21-10-1969 | [2] |
| 1st Achutha Menon Ministry | Minister for Home Minister for Education | 01-11-1969 to 01-08-1970 | [2] |
| 2nd Achutha Menon Ministry | Minister for Home Minister for Education | 04-10-1970 to 01-03-1973 | [2] |
| 1st Karunakaran Ministry | Minister for Finance Minister for Education | 25-03-1977 to 25-04-1977 | [2] |
| 1st Antony Ministry | Minister for Education |
| [2] |
| P. K. V. Ministry | Minister for Education | 29-10-1978 to 07-10-1979 | [2] |
| Koya Ministry | Chief Minister | 12 October to 1 December 1979 | |
| 2nd Karunakaran Ministry | Deputy Chief Minister | 28 December 1981 to 17 March 1982 | [2] |
| 3rd Karunakaran Ministry | Deputy Chief Minister | 24 May 1982 to 28 September 1983 | [2] |
Works
Source: Kerala Legislative Assembly (profile)
- My Haj pilgrimage
- Caux-London-Cairo
- The Malaysia I Saw
- How Legislative Assembly Works
- Soviet Union
- Muslim Rule in India Through Stories
- Five Days in Sri Lanka
- Camel to Cadillac
- Travel Around the World
Notes
References
- ^ Loksabha Profile (1962)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Miller, E. Roland. "Mappila Muslim Culture" State University of New York Press, Albany (2015); p. 204, 235–36, 329, 333, and 345.
- ^ Aravamudan, Gita; Louis, Arul B. (30 November 1979). "RSS is Attacking the Muslim minority: Mohammed Koya". India Today. Trivandrum.
- ^ Miller, Roland. E., "Mappila" in "The Encyclopedia of Islam". Volume VI. E. J. Brill, Leiden. 1987. pp. 458–56.
- ^ a b Jeffrey, Robin. "Politics, Women and Well-Being: How Kerala became a Model" Palgrave McMillan (1992); 112 and 114.
- ^ Speakers & Deputy Speakers Book – Kerala Legislative Assembly
- ^ a b c d e f g Kerala Legislative Assembly
Further reading
- Chief Ministers, Ministers, and Leaders of Opposition of Kerala (PDF), Thiruvananthapuram: Secratriat of Kerala Legislature, 2018
External links
- C. H. Mohammad Koya: Interview with India Today (1979)
- C. H. Mohammed Koya in Louis Malle's Phantom India