Mappila Muslims -Muhammed Abdurahman Sahib
Hussain Randathani
Muhammed Abdu Rahman, popularly known as Abdu rahman Sahib was a veteran political leader and human right activist of Malabar, the southern most part of India. He was a staunch nationalist and freedom fighter and fought for the rights of the minorities and other backward communities. He never reconciled with communalism and stood against communal politics. When Muslim League , a communal political organization tried to wean away the Muslims from national stream, the sahib vehemently opposed the League by saying that this party was a creation of the British and a hindrance in the path of national integration. He also opposed the idea of partition plan of Muslim League and the British and declared that Pakistan is death knell of the Indian Muslims and his words became true when India was partitioned. Both the communities-Hindus and Muslims suffered due to the acute communal strife that erupted the whole nation. As a human right activist, Abdu Rahman fought for the rights of the prisoners and the down trodden.
Abdu rahman was born in 1898 at Kodungallur near Kochi. He had his education at Vaniyampadi Islamiya college, Calicut Basal Mission School, Madras Muhammedan College, Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamiyya, New Delhi. At Aligarh he became the close disciple of Maulana Muhammed Ali and a staunch Congress and Khilafat activist. He left his education and plunged into politics as a Congress man basing his centre at Calicut. Here he voiced for the freedom of the nation and worked for the welfare of the poor. He started his career by inviting the attention of the authorities to the pathetic condition of the Mappila Muslims who were dubbed as rebels by the British and were denied any freedom. Many were imprisoned and deposed from the country. When the whole Malabr was ravaged by epidemics and people were dying out Abdurahman wrote a letter to Mr. Evans , the Malabar collector of Calicut to take immediate steps to save the people from their pathetic situation. When the authorities paid no heed to his appeals, Abdu Rahman sent letters to different institutions, National news papers like Hindu and Bombay Chronicle. A meeting of the human right activists was convened at Choupai near Bombay and it was decided to send financial assistance to the Mappilas who suffered at the hands of the British.
Abdurahman was arrested and imprisoned for his anti British activities. Even in jail he fought for the cause of the prisoners. The prisoners were treated harshly by the jail authorities. Abdurahman wrote a letter to the Jail Superintendent complaining on the harsh treatment of the jail warden. On account of the letter the a warden was suspended from his job. Due the interference of the sahib pure water facilities were arranged in the prison. After his release from the jail Abdurahman visited different places of Malabr to see directly the deprived conditions of the people. He found that the rebellion and epidemics had very badly affected the people and hundreds of people were died of starvation and cholera. In the Kakkinada Congess session he invited the attention of the delegates to the sufferings of the people of Malabar, particularly the Mappilas who were left without any assistance from any quarter. Thereupon, Abdul Qadir Qasuri, the president of the session visited Malabar and started an orphanage at Calicut for the Muslim orphans. Thus the JDT Islam Orphanage, the first of its kind in Malabar was started due to the strenuous efforts of Muhammed Abdu Rahman. About six rehabilitation centres were also started at different parts of Malabar.
In 1924 Malabar was affected again by severe famine. People began to die out of hardships and starvation. Abdurahman rose to the occasion and started a relief committee to help the affected people. He also tried to unite different relief groups in Malabar and the combined committee was represented by Servants of India society, Arya Samaj, Keala Pradesh Congress, Mappila Relief Committee and Tabligh-e Islam. The combined organization was named as All Malabar Central Relief Committee.
The Andaman Scheme was a notorious plan of the British to populate the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal ocean which was generally not suitable for human settlement. The British government began to send the prisoners of 1857 Indian Mutiny to the cellular jail constructed for housing the prisoners. Following this the prisoners of Malabar rebellions were also sent to Andamans. Curiously enough, a number of people died out of epidemics and bad weather. The natives called Jeruva attacked and killed the migrants and their farms were destroyed. By 1032 about 1400 Mappila families migrated to Andaman and they suffered a lot and many of them lost their life.
Abdu Rahman took the cause by himself and wrote articles on the conditions of Anaman Mappilas. He left for Calcutta to participate in the All party Conference and presented the Andaman issue in the conference. The Conference brought a resolution for the annulment of the Andaman Scheme. He went to Delhi and visited Mahatma Gandhi and appealed him to take the case to the Round Table Conference for which Mahatma was selected as a delegate. Government was forced to bring some reforms in the Andaman Scheme. Al Ameen, the mouth piece of Abdurahman voiced for the victims of Andaman and a Relief Committee was set up for their welfare. He wrote: “The jail authorities keep them under custody by terrorizing them and consider them as wild beasts. Jail wardens are often the worms of the human society. They inflict all kinds of cruelties up on the victims with the support of the superiors. Then how these people will be saved? Instead of pulse they are given boiled pigeon pea and because of this many of them die everyday”
“ It is very difficult to reveal the miseries of these poor people. They wear broken clothes and are unable to cover their nudity. They are forced to sleep on stones and fastened to chains. What I would say about the cruel mind of the authorities who didn’t provided even sheets to sleep.” ( Al Ameen,31-8-1926). Abdu Rahman filed a complaint against the jail warden to the superiors and there was the desired effect. When AR Knapp visited jail to submit a report, Abdu Rahman approached him and revealed the miseries of the prisoners. But Mr. Knapp didn’t like his attitude and he was sent to Madras Central Jail. The condition in the central jail was more pathetic. Abdurahman became the arch enemy of the jail authorities. Every day he was beaten very harshly. He argued that according to British law the jail authority had no right to give a prisoners more than twenty blows a day. The complaint was received by the jail superintendent and he gave an order not to beat the prisoners harshly.
Abdurahman was very particular in performing his prayers. He asked the jailor to provide him full shirt to perform namaz. The jailors refused to do so. Then Abdurahman decided to observe fast unto death in the jail. The news reached Malabar and the Congress demanded the government to save Abdurahman’s life and meetings were held at different parts of Malabar. This time a gentle man, Mr. Stonia became the jail superintendent and he accepted the demands and all the prisoners were given cloths and sufficient water for their primary needs.
Abdu Rahman led an agitation against the custodians of Mamburam shrine where the Mappila leader Sayyid Mamburam Ba Alawi was buried. After the demise of the sayyid his son Sayyid fazal became the successor. Sayyid fazal was deported by the British authorities for his alleged involvement in the out breaks of the region. After his deportation the custodian ship of the shrine was entrusted to his relatives who agreed that they will send a portion of the income of the shrine to Sayyid Fazal every year. The new custodians not only confiscated all the wealth for themselves and never sent even a penny to Sayyid Fazal and his family. After the death of Sayyid Fazal his family plunged into poverty and suffered to meet both ends. His son Sayyid Ali wrote a letter to Abdurahman (5 April 1933) revealing the pathetic condition of the family. Abdurahman took the issue to himself and made arrangements to bring back the family to Malabar. The Mamburam restoration Committee was formed in the presence of Mappila leaders at Calicut. When Sayyid Ali, the son of Sayyid Fazal came to visit the grave of his grand father, the custodians with the help of the British officers prevented him entering Malabar. He even reached Parappanangadi, the nearby railway station of the shrine, but the collector denied him entry. Abdu Rahman talked with the authorities but without result. Sayyid Ali got down at Mahi which was under the French.
Abdurahman wrote fiery articles on Mambram issue and because of his anti British attitude arrest warrant was issued against him. He escaped to Madras where with the help of M. Krishnan Nair, the government pleader, the warrant was iced up. In the District Board meeting of 20 March 1934 Abdurahman brought a resolution demanding the authorities to bringing back the family of Sayyid Fazal to Malabar. M. Chadayan supported the resolution and it was passed. He also wrote a letter to Madras governor on the same matter, but there was no reply. When Abdurahman was elected to the Madras assembly he raised the same issue before the government. He submitted a memorandum, to the government for the purpose. Malabar Congress committee also sent a resolution to the government . However the assembly was dissolved before taking any decision on the issue. Abdurahman was arrested without any reason as a pretext to prevent any anti government activities during the ensuing world war.
Abdurahman was a staunch freedom fighter and he was there in the struggles even when he was a student. He entered in politics as a disciple of Subash Chandra Bose and Maulana Muhammed Ali. He actively participated in the Khilafat and Non cooperation movements and closely followed the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi. When the khilafat movement of Malabar turned into violence, he exhorted the people to keep away from it. He travelled throughout Malabar to help the victims of the revolt. When Abdurahman heard that the army was moving to Pookkottur to fight away the rebels, he rushed to the place to disperse the people inorder to save themselves from the massacre of the army. He got up into a bullock cart and addressed the violent Mappila mob thus:
“Oh, my poor Mappila brothers. For what purpose you are going? I had also the desire to enter paradise after participating in this great jihad. But why I am not ready for this? When we start to attain paradise our destitute mothers and sisters will be disgraced. If we attained paradise by leaving them for disgrace what happiness would be there for our souls?
Oh! My poor Mappila brothers, Now the Mappila Malayalam in under fire. The dust coming out of it will cause suffocation for us in the paradise. So you keep away from violence, please.”
The speech had the desired effect. For the time being the people were dispersed. But it was a lull before the storm. When Abdurahman was returning after his visit at Manjeri , he heard that people had again turned to violence.
When Mahatma Gandhi started Civil Disobedience Movement in 1931, Abdurahman asked all the Mappilas and Congress men to take part in it. He called the movement as a greater war(Jihad al Akbar. People moved to the sea shore to violate the laws on salt and began to make salt out of sea water. Police surrounded them and attacked with lathis. Abdurahman was beaten very severely. He was arrested along with K.Kelappan, P. Krishna Pillai, K. Madhavan Nair, Krishna Swamy Ayyar and others. Abdu Rahman was active in Vaikkam Satyagraha, struggle against Rowlat Act and visit of Simon to India- all were part s of freedom struggle.
Abdurahman was also supported the cause of labourers. He started a labour Movement under the Congree party. He organized a sudden strike in the weaving factories at Kannur and Pappinisseri for availing special allowance. In 1932 he organized the Kisan Sabha. He actively involved in organizing the pesants of Pappinisseri and Karivellur. He was supported by EMS Namboodirippad and AK Gopalan, both of whom later started communist party in Kerala. He organized the plantation workers of Kuttyadi and started the All Malabar Peasant congress. He stated that the welfare of the peasants is a part of freedom struggle and the congress cannot undermine the problems of the peasants.
His religion
Abdurahman was a pious believer in Islam and observed prayers and religious rites. When the Aikya Sangam movement started at Kosungallur many of the leading Mappilas joined the movement in order to settle the issues among the Muslims of Kodungallur. Most of the traditional scholars, however kept away from the movement by saying that its objectives were opposed to the traditional Islam. Abdurahman was not a supporter of Aikya Sangam, but for long he never publicly criticized it. He never reconciled with loyalists of the organization. He reached in the second conference of the Aikya Sangaam in 1924 in the hope of passing a resolution against the British for their utter negligence of the khilafat issue. Abdu Rahman found that the Aikya Sangam was not ready to resist the British and the loyalists joined hands in defeating the resolution. Abdurahman left the organization and came publicly against it. When the Sangam decided to start a bank at Ernakulam and its leader Sri. KM.Moulavi issued a fatwa in favour of bank interest, Abdurahman followed the ulama in attacking the bank tooth and nail. The bank closed and the sangam had lost its popularity. Abdu Rahman also criticized the matrilineal system existed in certain parts of Malabar. In the session of Muslim Majlis Abdurahman made a fierce speech against this abominable practice. This led to a skirmish in the session when B. Pocker Sahib vehemently opposed him.
The Muslim League was the first enemy of Abdu Rahman in politics. He never compromised with the league in the political outlook and he argued that Muslims should come to the mainstream inorder to develop themselves upholding their identity. The loyalist Muslims with the help of Muslim league and the British opposed him everywhere and he was not even allowed to speak in the meetings. Even his life was under threat. But Abdurahman, as a fighter for his cause undermined the threats and bravely silenced his enemies. He was dubbed as a kafir and traitor by the leaguers. Some fatwas were circulated against him. The khan bahadurs and loyalists joined together with the league against him and he was defeated in the elections.
Abdu Rahman passed away on 23 November 1945at the age of forty seven.
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