Koyapalli Kelappan (24 August 1889 – 7 October 1971) was an Indian politician, independence activist, educationist and journalist. During the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...

, he was the lead figure of

Indian National Congress 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 ...

in Kerala and was popularly known as ''Kerala Gandhi''. After Indian independence, he held various seats in Gandhian organizations. He is the founding member and president of the

Nair Service Society The Nair Service Society (NSS) is an organisation created for the social advancement and welfare of the Nair community that is found primarily in the state of Kerala in Southern part of India. It was established under the leadership of Mannathu ...

and was also the founder of Kerala Kshetra Samrakshana Samiti (Temple Protection Movement).

Early life

Kelappan was born in the small village of

Muchukunnu Muchukunnu is a small village on the Malabar Coast of south-western India. Celebrities Kelappaji (Kerala Gandhi) was born here. Clay works A traditional art is the creation of clay pots, which clay workers practice in their houses. A tile f ...

Koyilandy A Survey of Kerala History, A. Shreedhara Menon ar, Fundriya pt, Pandarani , settlement_type = MunicipalityTaluk , image_skyline = KadaloorPointLight 01.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption ...

Calicut Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

, Kerala. His father's name is Kanaran Nair and mother's name is Kunjamma Amma. He studied in Calicut and

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

and graduated from the

University of Madras The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public university, public State university (India), state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigiou ...

before starting his career as a teacher at St. Berchmans High School,

Changanassery Changanassery or Changanacherry is a municipal town in Kottayam district in the state of Kerala, India. History The first recorded history on the origin of Changanacherry is obtained from Sangam period literature. According to Sangam era d ...

. Kelappan was the founding President of the

and later became the principal of a school run by the society.

As reformer

He fought for social reforms on one hand and the British on the other. He fought relentlessly against untouchability and caste-based discrimination. Along with K. Kumar, he became the earliest in Kerala to remove the suffix to his name that implied caste-status. He was called Kerala Gandhi. Kelappan laboured incessantly for the equality of all sections of the people. He was a major influence on the

Vaikom Satyagraha Vaikom Satyagraha, from 30 March 1924 to 23 November 1925, was a nonviolent agitation for access to the prohibited public environs of the Vaikom Temple in the Kingdom of Travancore. Kingdom of Travancore was known for its rigid and oppressive ca ...

movement and later led the

Guruvayur Satyagraha Guruvayur Satyagraha took place in (1931–32) and was a Satyagraha (non-violent protest) in the present Thrissur district, which was then part of Ponnani Taluk of Malabar district, now part of Kerala, which was an effort to allow entry for unto ...

in 1932. During Gandhi's visit to Travancore to commemorate the

Temple Entry Proclamation The Temple Entry Proclamation was issued by Maharaja Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma on November 12, 1936. The Proclamation abolished the ban on the so-called 'low caste people' or from entering Hindu temples in the Princely State of Travancor ...

, he seconded the most critical resolution re-establishing faith in Gandhiji's leadership and the forward steps to be taken in conformity with the Gandhian approach to translate the spirit of the move for social equality. The resolution was presented by K. Kumar of Travancore, a veteran reformer and one of the leaders of the Vaikom Satyagraha who later came to be forgotten by people and historians.

Role post independence

After

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

he left the Congress Party and joined the

Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party The Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party (''Farmer Worker People's Party'') was a political party of India. Established in 1951, it merged with the Socialist Party to form the Praja Socialist Party in the following year. History In June, 1951 Indian ...

and was elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

from the Ponnani Lok Sabha seat in 1952. At the end of his term, he left active politics and became a Sarvodaya worker and was actively associated with Bhoodan Movement in Kerala. Kelappan helped in starting ''

Mathrubhoomi ''Mathrubhumi'' is a Malayalam newspaper that is published from Kerala, India. It was founded by K. P. Kesava Menon, an active volunteer in the Indian freedom struggle against the British. The word "Mathrubhumi" translates to 'mother land'. I ...

'' and was its editor for a number of years. He worked for unification of Kerala into a new linguistic state. He was also the president of many Gandhian organizations in Kerala including Kerala Sarvodaya Sangh, Kerala Gandhi Smarak Nidhi, Kerala Sarvodaya Mandal and Gandhi Peace Foundation, Calicut. Towards the end of his life Kelappan was also involved in opposition against communal-based politics of his state. Like many others, he opposed the formation of Muslim-majority

Malappuram District Malappuram (), is one of the List of districts of Kerala, 14 districts in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala, with a coastline of . It is the most populous district of Kerala, which is home to around 13% of the to ...

in Kerala by the E.M.S Namboothiripadu-led-Left Government, arguing that it will create a 'mini Pakistan'. His last big involvement was in the 'Tali Temple Movement'. Locals at

Angadippuram Angadipuram is a major suburb of Perinthalmanna town, in Malappuram District of Kerala, southern India. It was the capital of the powerful medieval kingdom of Valluvanad. Angadipuram is also known for Angadipuram Laterite, a notified go-heri ...

in Malappuram who were trying to peacefully rebuild a Hindu Temple destroyed by Tipu's forces in 18th century were harassed by extremist religious elements, asserting that a Mosque was nearby the destroyed site. Then Left Government was also apathetic to the local Hindu cause. Kelappan himself entered into the struggle and led a ' Satygaraha' for the reconstruction of the Temple. Despite several attempts by the Government and police to stop the protests, Kelappan's satyagaraha won and the Hindus were allowed to build their temple. But before its completion, K.Kelappan died on October 7, 1971. The Temple built with his support stands alongside the Mosque, symbolizing the present harmony among different communities.

Awards and recognition

In his honour

India Post India Post is a government-operated postal system in India, part of the Department of Post under the Ministry of Communications. Generally known as the Post Office, it is the most widely distributed postal system in the world. Warren Hastings ha ...

released a

Commemorative stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike def ...

in 1990.K. Kelappan Commemorative Stamp
Indianpost.com. Retrieved on 6 December 2018.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koyapalli Kelappan 1889 births 1971 deaths India MPs 1952–1957 Gandhians Indian civil rights activists Indian independence activists from Kerala Indian National Congress politicians from Kerala Lok Sabha members from Kerala Malayali politicians People from Kozhikode district University of Madras alumni