K. M. Seethi Sahib (1899—1961), born K. M. Seethi, was an Indian politician and community leader from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. He served as the Speaker of

Kerala Assembly The Kerala Legislative Assembly, popularly known as the Kerala Niyamasabha, is the State Assembly of Kerala, one of the 28 states in India. The Assembly is formed by 140 elected representatives. Each elected member represents one of the 140 c ...

during 1960-61 ( Pattom A. Thanu Pillai Ministry). Seethi Sahib, born in 1899 in an affluent family in

Kodungallur Kodungallur (; also Cranganore, Portuguese: Cranganor; formerly known as Mahodayapuram, Shingly, Vanchi, Muchiri, Muyirikkode, and Muziris) is a historically significant town situated on the banks of river Periyar on the Malabar Coast in Thr ...

in the

Cochin state The Kingdom of Cochin, named after its capital in the city of Kochi (Cochin), was a kingdom in the central part of present-day Kerala state. It commenced at the early part of the 12th century and continued to rule until 1949, when monarchy wa ...

, enrolled as an Advocate in

Madras High Court The Madras High Court is a High Court in India. It has appellate jurisdiction over the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. It is located in Chennai, and is the third oldest high court of India after the Calcutta High C ...

in 1927 and started practice in

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

. He started his political career with the

Congress Party The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

. He was elected to the Cochin Council twice (1928 and 1931) as a Congress member. During the mid-1930s when the Muslim League ceased to cooperate with the Congress, Seethi Sahib and colleagues started organising the Muslim League in Malabar District. Seethi Sahib was the Secretary of the

Indian Union Muslim League The Indian Union Muslim League (abbreviated as the I. U. M. L. or the League) is an Indian political party primarily based in the Indian state of Kerala. It is recognised as a State Party in Kerala by the Election Commission of India. The first ...

during the 1957 General Elections in India. After the Kerala Assembly Election victory against the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

in 1960, Seethi Sahib was elected as the Speaker of the

. He died while in office in 17, April 1961. C. H. Muhammed Koya succeeded Seethi Sahib as the Speaker of the

. Seethi Sahib is often considered as "the chief architect of Mappila revival" after the 1921 Mappila Uprising. He was described by historian Robin Jeffrey as "the leading Mappila intellectual of the generation". Seethi Sahib was originally inspired by the reformist leader Wakkom Maulavi (1873—1932).

Life and career

Early life

K. M. Seethi was born in 1899 as the son of Haji Seethi Mohammed and P. K. Fatima Beevi in an affluent family in

(

) in central Kerala. He did his schooling at Kodungallur High School and completed the Intermediate Course from Maharaja's College, Cochin in 1917, topping his yearly batch. After graduating in law, he enrolled as an advocate in

in 1927 (practising at

Ernakulam Ernakulam () is the Central Business District of the city of Kochi in Kerala, India and has lent its name to the Ernakulam district. Many major establishments, including the Kerala High Court, the office of the Kochi Municipal Corporation a ...

With the Congress Party

Seethi Sahib joined politics as a student, taking part in the

Non-Cooperation Movement The Non-cooperation movement was a political campaign launched on 4 September 1920, by Mahatma Gandhi to have Indians revoke their cooperation from the British government, with the aim of persuading them to grant self-governance.

in (1920–22). The movement was organized by

Mohandas K. Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

to induce the British government to grant Self-Government to India. In 1928, Seethi Sahib was elected to the Cochin Legislative Assembly (on the Congress ticket). He attended the 1930 Lahore Congress representing "Kerala". A year later (1931), he was re-elected to the Cochin Legislative Assembly with the Congress Party. In 1932, Seethi Sahib shifted his practice from Ernakulam to

Tellicherry Thalassery (), formerly Tellicherry, is a municipality, Commercial City on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district, in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Kodagu (Karna ...

. He left Congress in 1933.

With the Muslim League

During the mid-1930s when the Muslim League ceased to cooperate with the Congress, Seethi Sahib and colleagues started organising the

League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

in Malabar District. In 1946, he was elected to the

Madras Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members of whom are democratically elected using the First-past-the-post system. The presiding officer of the Assembl ...

from the Malappuram Constituency, a victory he repeated in 1952.

In the new Kerala state

Seethi Sahib was the Secretary of the

during the 1957 General Elections in India. The Congress High Command wished to form a tripartite coalition consisting of the Congress Party, the

Praja Socialist Party The Praja Socialist Party, abbreviated as PSP, was an Indian political party. It was founded when the Socialist Party, led by Jayaprakash Narayan, Rambriksh Benipuri, Acharya Narendra Deva and Basawon Singh (Sinha), merged with the Kisan Mazdoo ...

and the Muslim League in the upcoming elections. However, the proposed front was eventually veteod by the Congress Party. After the Kerala Assembly Election victory against the

in 1960, Seethi Sahib was elected as the Speaker of the

(22 February). He represented Kuttippuram Constituency. Seethi Sahib died while in office in 17, April 1961. C. H. Muhammed Koya — only after resigning his legislative party (the League) affiliation — succeeded Seethi Sahib as the Speaker of the

Influence of Wakkom

K. M. Seethi Sahib was inspired by Wakkom Maulavi (1873—1932), a major theological reformer of 20th century Kerala. He had held discussions with Wakkom at the Trivandrum Law College. Seethi Sahib carried forward the reforms of Wakkom to social and political realms. He "combined the progressive and traditional streams" to became "in the sociopolitical realm, the chief architect of the Muslim revival" in Kerala.

As a writer

Apart from being a politician and prominent lawyer, Seethi Sahib was also a writer and a social worker. He co-founded the Chandrika newspaper, now the official daily of

, in the 1930s. Individuals such as B. Pocker Sahib, the Muslim League leader, K. K. Muhammad Shafi, the first editor of the newspaper Chandrika, and C. P. Mammu Keyi, its first managing director were highly influenced by Seethi Sahib.

Legacy

* Seethi Sahib was a founding member of the Farook College at Calicut. * Seethi Sahib Memorial Polytechnic College in

Tirur Tirur is a Municipality in Malappuram district in the Indian state of Kerala spread over an area of . It is one of the business centers of Malappuram district and is situated west of Malappuram and south of Kozhikode, on the Shoranur–Mangalor ...

and

Seethi Sahib Higher Secondary School Seethi Sahib Higher Secondary School is a prominent higher secondary school in Kerala located in Taliparamba, Kerala, India. It was established in 1968. The school is named after former Speaker Seethi Sahib of the Kerala Legislative Assembly. Sc ...

Taliparamba Taliparamba (also known as Perinchelloor and Lakshmipuram) is a Municipalities of Kerala, Municipality in Taliparamba taluk of Kannur district, Kerala, India. The municipal town spreads over an area of and is inhabited by 44,247 number ...

, Seethi Sahib Memorial Higher Secondary School and Teachers Training School are at his home village Azhikode, are named after K. M. Seethi Sahib.

Biographies

* "Seethi Sahib" (1959), by K. K. Muhammad Abdul Kareem, published by C. H. Muhammad and Sons. * "Janab K. M. Seethi Sahib" (1960), by M. Alikunhi, published by Green House. * "Seethi Sahib" (1966), by Abu Siddique, published by Green House. * "Seethi Sahib" (1992), by T. M. Savankutty, published by the Department of Cultural Publications, Government of Kerala. * "Navothana Samskrithiyude Speaker Seethi Sahib" (2015), by K. M. Althaf, published by Olive Publications.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seethi, K. M. 1898 births 1961 deaths Mappilas People from Thrissur district Speakers of the Kerala Legislative Assembly Indian Union Muslim League politicians Indian independence activists from Kerala Indian editors 20th-century Indian lawyers Founders of Indian schools and colleges Indian reformers Kerala MLAs 1960–1964 Government Law College, Thiruvananthapuram alumni