Anaparambil Joseph John (1893–1957) was an
Indian freedom fighter
The Indian independence movement consisted of efforts by individuals and organizations from a wide spectrum of society to obtain political independence from the British, French and Portuguese rule through the use of a many methods. This is a l ...
and statesman. He was
Chief Minister of
Travancore-Cochin and
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
of
Madras State
Madras State was a state of India during the mid-20th century. At the time of its formation in 1950, it included the whole of present-day Tamil Nadu (except Kanyakumari district), Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, the Malabar region of North and ...
.
Early life
He was born in 1893, at
Thalayolaparambu and had his primary education at the local school and finished his school final from Vaikom High School. After doing the degree in Law in 1919 from the Law College, Madras, he began his career as a lawyer.
The turning point in John's life came when he plunged into freedom struggle after abandoning his bright future in his profession. He was one of the founding leaders of ''Travancore State Congress''.
He was in the forefront of the historic ''Abstention Movement'' which rocked
Travancore
The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. A ...
for some time; an agitation against social injustice staged by the weaker sections and backward classes for proportionate representations in government service. He fought against ''Independent Travancore'' proposed by
Sir C P Rama Swamy Iyer in 1946.
Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin
In the first general elections held in India in 1951–52, John was elected from Poonjar constituency to the Travancore-Cochin Legislative Assembly. The Congress formed Government with AJ John as Chief Minister in March 1952 with the support of the Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress (T.T.N.C.). With the demand for merging
Kanyakumari
Kanniyakumari (; , referring to Devi Kanya Kumari), also known as Cape Comorin, is a city in Kanniyakumari district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent and the southernmost city in mainland Ind ...
in Tamil Nadu on 23 September 1953, the majority of the ministry lost due to the withdrawal of support from the T.T.N.C. John served as Chief Minister until March 1954, until the new cabinet was formed.
He also served as Speaker of the first Travancore Legislative Assembly in 1948 and Minister for Home, Food, Civil Supplies and Forest in
Panampally Govinda Menon Ministry from 1955 to 1956.
Governor of Madras State
John was appointed Governor of
Madras State
Madras State was a state of India during the mid-20th century. At the time of its formation in 1950, it included the whole of present-day Tamil Nadu (except Kanyakumari district), Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, the Malabar region of North and ...
in 1956. He died in October 1957, when he was the Governor of Madras State after a sudden illness.
See also
*
T. M. Varghese
*
C. Kesavan
C. Kesavan (23 May 1891 – 7 July 1969) was a politician, social reformer, statesman and the Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin during 1950–1952. He led the Nivarthana agitation in Travancore to gain the democratic authority for the citizen ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:John, A. J.
1893 births
1957 deaths
Indian National Congress politicians from Kerala
Indian anti-communists
Malayali politicians
Chief Ministers of Kerala
Governors of Tamil Nadu
Governors of Madras
Chief ministers from Indian National Congress
Travancore–Cochin MLAs 1952–1954
Travancore–Cochin MLAs 1954–1956