Bishnuram Medhi (24 April 1888 – 21 January 1981) was an Indian politician and freedom-fighter who served as the Chief Minister of Assam from 1950 to 1957 and 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 c ...

from January 1958 till May 1964.

Early life

Bishnuram Medhi was born to poor Assamese peasants, Sonaram and Alehi, of Hajo, near

Gauhati Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...

, on 24 April 1888. He was a very bright student. Bishnuram studied at Cotton Collegiate School in Gauhati (now Guwahati) and completed his matriculation in 1905. Forefathers of Bishnuram settled in Hajo in early eighteenth century from the erstwhile Koch Kingdom, Cooch Beher via Barpeta and was given the charge of "Medhi" in the famous Hayagreeva Madhav Temple of Hajo. One prominent person of Hajo, late Holiram Medhi, became an Extra Assistant Commissioner under British Rule after studying at Gauripur, in the English School run by the Jaminder of Gauripur as there was no other school in Assam, at that time, imparting modern English education. Perseverance for education of Late Holiram Medhi perhaps enthused child Bishnuram to dream big and pursue higher studies himself which was very uncommon in those days. On completion of his schooling, he joined Presidency College, then affiliated with the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate State university (India), state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered ...

, and completed his post graduation in organic chemistry from

Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...

in 1911. His close friend was famous Bengali industrialist, founder of Power Tools And Appliances Co. Ltd. Nagendra Nath Das. Bishnuram pursued his studies in law and was called to the bar in 1914.

Indian Independence Movement

Bishnuram joined the Indian National Congress in the 1920s and participated in the Non-Cooperation Movement. In 1926, he was appointed Joint-Secretary of the Reception Committee of the Pandu session of the Indian National Congress. In 1930, Bishnuram was elected President of the Assam Provincial Congress. Bishnuram Medhi assisted and played crucial role with Gopinath Bordoloi in securing Assam for India and preventing from being a part of East Pakistan under grouping during India's Independence.

Post-independence politics

When provincial autonomy was introduced in 1935, Bishnuram served as the finance minister in

Gopinath Bordoloi Gopinath Bordoloi (6 June 1890 – 5 August 1950) was a politician and Indian independence activist who served as the first Chief Minister of Assam. He was a follower of the Gandhian principle of non-violence as a political tool. Due to his un ...

's cabinet. In 1950, Bishnuram was elected

Chief Minister of Assam The chief minister of Assam, an Indian state, is the head of the Government of Assam. As per the Constitution of India, the governor is the state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following e ...

and served from 1950 to 1957. As the Chief Minister, Medhi understood the gravity of the illegal influx from Bangladesh posing serious threat to the local population. He took stern action against illegal settlers which made him unpopular amongst few powerful members of his own party who considered the settlers as prominent vote bank. Medhi also advocated for strong action against the rebelling Nagas. He was a Teetotaller and strict disciplinarian as an individual and also in public life. During his time, Naga insurgency was gaining momentum under Angami Zapu Phizo. It is believed that initiative to divide the Naga leaders by the Government machineries led to the killing of another charismatic Naga leader Sakhrie in 1956 by Phizo group. It was also rumoured that Bishnuram's personal dislike for some of the tribal customs added fuel to the rebellion in the hilly areas of Assam. Certainly, Bishnuram disapproved activities of the communists, publicly deplored them and announced award of Ten Thousand on Bishnu Prasad Rabha, another legendary son of Assam and rebel leader of the communist movement in Assam. He was equally suspicious on the activities of the Christian Missionaries and their role in fermenting secessionist activities in the hill districts of undivided Assam. Bishnuram's political adversaries, including many luminaries of Assam, labelled charges against him to the High Command anticipating erosion of political support for his hard measures against illegal settlers and Naga Rebellion. His relation with late Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and other leaders slowly turned sour and eventually Bishnuram Medhi was taken out from Assam as the Governor of Madras in spite of being a popular public leader. His dedication, simplicity, honesty and love for Assam and India was legendary. He is known as the Iron Man of Assam. Its no wonder that after departure of Bishnuram from the political scenario of Assam, rampant illegal influx from Bangladesh took place on political patronage for which Bishnuram was a stumbling block. It took considerable time for the successor of Bishnuram, Late B P Chaliha, to appreciate the influx problem and take some steps during his third stint as Chief Minister. After his return from Madras, Bishnuram again became member of Legislative Assembly, yet he was not considered by his party for any sensitive post. Perhaps his love for his state and no nonsense approach became a misfit in the changed political equation. From 1958 to 1964, Bishnuram served as the

Governor of Madras This is a list of the governors, agents, and presidents of colonial Madras, initially of the English East India Company, up to the end of British colonial rule in 1947. English Agents In 1639, the grant of Madras to the English was finalized be ...

Death

Bishnuram Medhi had a long eventful life which came to an end on 21 January 1981 at the age of 92. He did not have any children. As per his wish, his home at Hajo was converted into Shishu Kalyan Kendra (children welfare centre) while the other house in Latasil, Guwahati, was made a children library under Bishnu Nirmala Trust. His wife, Nirmala Medhi, was a devoted and pious lady. It is said that Nirmala Medhi, an expert weaver herself, took hand weaving tools to Madras Rajbhawan. One Tamil gentleman saw the Late Nirmala Medhi weaving the traditional Assamese Gamocha and appreciating the tremendous business potential, started producing Gamocha in Madras in large scale and thus Gamocha from Madras (Tamil Nadu) started selling in Assam.

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