M. Muhammad Ismail

2021-09-15T20:42:21Z

2409:4072:6D87:55D6:0:0:DD49:7D11: /* Political career */

{{for|the Pakistani cricketer|Mohammad Ismail (cricketer)}}
{{short description|Indian politician}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = M. Muhammad Ismail Rowther
| image = M. Muhammad Ismail (Postage Stamp, Government of India).jpg
| caption = M. Muhammad Ismail sahib on a 1996 postage stamp of India
| birth_date = {{birth date|1896|06|05|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Tirunelveli]], [[Madras Presidency]], [[British India]]
| residence =
| death_date = {{death date and age|1972|04|05|1896|06|05|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Chennai|Madras]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]
| office = Member of the [[Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly|Madras State Legislative Assembly]]
| term_start = 1946
| term_end = 1952
| constituency =
| term =
| predecessor =
| successor =
| office2 = Member of the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Indian Constituent Assembly]]
| term_start2 = 1948
| term_end2 = 1952
| office3 = Member of the [[Rajya Sabha]]
| term_start3 = 1952
| term_end3 = 1958
| office4 = Member of the [[Lok Sabha]]
| term_start4 = 1962
| term_end4 = 1972
| constituency4 = [[Manjeri (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri]]
| party = * [[All-India Muslim League]] (till 1947)
* [[Indian Union Muslim League]] (after 1947)
| spouse = Jamal Hameeda Bi
| children = Jamal Miakhan (son)
| website =
| footnotes =
}}

'''M. Muhammad Ismail Rowther''' ({{lang-ta|முஹம்மது இஸ்மாயில், காயிதே மில்லத் }}; 5 June 1896—5 April 1972) was an Indian politician and social worker from [[Tirunelveli]], southern [[Tamil Nadu]]. He is the founder of [[Indian Union Muslim League]] after the partition of [[British India]] (1947).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> He was popularly known in [[Tamil Nadu]] and [[Kerala]] as the "Quaid-e-Millat" ("the Leader of the Nation").<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|last=Muthiah|first=S.|date=2017-05-01|title=Who was Quaid-E-Millat?|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/society/history-and-culture/who-was-quaid-e-millat/article18347247.ece|access-date=2020-10-13|issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

Ismail was a member of Madras Legislative Assembly and Leader of the Opposition (1946—52).<ref name=":1" /> He was also a member (1948—50) of the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] (1946), the drafting body of the [[constitution of India]]. He was also a member of [[Rajya Sabha]] (1952—58) from [[Madras State|Madras]] and [[Lok Sabha]] (3rd, 1962—67, 4th, 1967—70 and 5th, 1971—72).<ref name=":1" />

==Life and career==
M. Muhammad Ismail was born in Pettai, [[Tirunelveli]], in what is now the Indian state of [[Tamil Nadu]] on 5 June 1896 to Maulavi K. T. Miakhan Rowther.<ref name=":1" /> He was educated at C. M. S. College and M. D. T. Hindu College at Tirunelveli and later at St. Joseph's College, [[Trichy|Trichinopoly]] and [[Madras Christian College|Christian College, Madras]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=M. Muhammad Ismail (Fifth Lok Sabha Members. Profile)|url=http://164.100.47.194/loksabha/writereaddata/biodata_1_12/1564.htm|website=Lok Sabha}}</ref>

Ismail started the 'Young Muslim Society' in his home town Tirunelveli Petai in 1909 (as a 13-year-old).<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> He was also instrumental in establishing 'Majlis-ul-Ulama' ('the Council of Islamic Scholars') in 1918.<ref name=":1" /> He went into business in the 1920s and became a leader of leather and meat industry and eventually of [[Madras]] commerce.<ref name=":3" />

Ismail married Jamal Hameeda Bi in November 1923.<ref name=":1" /> Ismail's brother, K. T. M. Ahmed Ibrahim, was also a principal leader of the [[All-India Muslim League]] in [[Madras Presidency]].<ref name=":02" />

==Political career==

=== With the All-India Muslim League ===
Success in [[Madras]] commerce led Ismail into Indian politics.<ref name=":3" /> Along with [[K. M. Seethi Saheb]], [[B. Pocker]] and [[K. Uppi Saheb]], he was one of the principal leaders of [[All-India Muslim League]] in [[Madras Presidency]] from the mid-1930s.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal|last=Wright|first=Theodore P.|date=1966|title=The Muslim League in South India since Independence|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/muslim-league-in-south-india-since-independence-a-study-in-minority-group-political-strategies/2EBA3F25D373A0D9BA1DBAA6B9D25C30|journal=American Political Science Review|language=en|volume=60|issue=3|pages=579–599|doi=10.2307/1952972|issn=0003-0554|jstor=1952972}}</ref>

In 1945, he became the President of the [[Madras Presidency]] unit of the All-India Muslim League. His joint secretary is P. N. Abuthalib,
<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Bhattacharjee|first=Rupanwita|date=2018-09-29|title=Muhammad Ismail, Indian Muslim League Pioneer who Wanted Hindustani as Official Language|url=https://theprint.in/forgotten-founders/muhammad-ismail-indian-muslim-league-pioneer-who-wanted-hindustani-as-official-language/122525/|website=The Print|language=en-US}}</ref> In the elections to the Madras legislature, the League won all but ten of the reserved seats in 1936 and all in [[1946 Madras Presidency legislative assembly election|1946]].<ref name=":02" /> The League emerged as the second largest party in the Assembly after the 1946 elections and Ismail served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly during 1946–52.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="ralhan">{{Cite book|last=Ralhan|first=Om Prakash|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6qEHg_7sWGQC&pg=PA1045|title=Encyclopaedia Of Political Parties|publisher=Anmol Publications|year=1998|isbn=978-81-7488-865-5|volume=33-50|pages=13}}</ref><ref name="dash">{{Cite book|last=Dash|first=Shreeram Chandra|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SoRaAAAAIAAJ&q=165|title=The Constitution of India: A Comparative Study|publisher=Chaitanya Publishing House|year=1968|page=532}}</ref><ref name="Saroja">{{Cite book|author=Sundararajan|first=Saroja|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Nr5HAAAAMAAJ|title=March to Freedom in Madras Presidency, 1916–1947|publisher=Lalitha Publications|year=1989|location=Madras|pages=623–636}}</ref>

=== With the Indian Union Muslim League ===
When [[Partition of India|British India was partitioned]] into India and [[Pakistan]], the [[All-India Muslim League]] was virtually disbanded (December, 1947).<ref name=":02" /> Ismail, the then President of the Madras Muslim League, was chosen as the Convener of the Indian segment of the League.<ref name=":02" /> The Indian members of the League formed the [[Indian Union Muslim League]] at Madras (first council in March, 1948 and constitution passed in September, 1951).<ref name=":02" /> Ismail was elected as the first President of Indian Union Muslim League.<ref name=":1" />

After partition, Muslims lawmakers were still well represented in the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]], the drafting body of the [[constitution of India]] (almost all of these lawmakers had been elected on League tickets). Only those from [[Madras Presidency]] formally adhered to [[Indian Union Muslim League]] after August, 1947.<ref name=":02" />

Ismail was elected from the Madras Legislative Assembly to the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] in 1948.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="ralhan" /><ref name="dash" /><ref name="Saroja" /> When the report of the Advisory Committee on Minorities was debated (1949), League President Ismail moved a motion for the retention of reserved seats for Muslims and a separate communal electorate. The [[Constituent Assembly of India|Assembly]] summarily rejected this motion.<ref name=":02" />

Ismail also wanted wanted both [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]] among the Official Languages of India.<ref name=":2" />

=== In Parliament ===
In the 1950s, Ismail started negotiating with the stubborn Congress High Command (through the Madras Congress leadership) for the coveted Congress recognition. Some informal alliances were made with the Madras Congress. However, talks with [[K. Kamaraj Nadar]] broke down before the 1957 General Elections and the League suffered a debacle in Tamil Nadu. The party witnessed as a split in October, 1961. League now allied with the [[Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam]].<ref name=":02" />

In 1952, Ismail was elected to the [[Rajya Sabha]] from [[Madras State|Madras]] and remained a member till 1958.<ref name=":3" /> He was the first Member of Parliament (M.P) to request that part of his emolument as an M.P., be retained for National Defence Fund.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Quaid-e-Milleth Trust|url=http://www.quaidemillethtrust.com/|website=Quaid-e-Milleth Trust}}</ref> While in Rajya Sabha he supported the retaining of [[Sharia|Shari'ah Law]] for Indian Muslims.<ref name=":1" />

When the state of [[Kerala]] was formed by the [[States Reorganisation Act]] in 1956, Ismail shifted to Kerala politics. He was elected to the [[Lok Sabha]] from [[Manjeri (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri Parliamentary Constituency]] three times – in [[1962 Indian general election|1962]] (Third Lok Sabha), [[1967 Indian general election|1967]] (Fourth Lok Sabha) and [[1971 Indian general election|1971]] (Fifth Lok Sabha) as an Indian Union Muslim League candidate.<ref name=":1" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+[http://www.ceo.kerala.gov.in/electionhistory.html General Elections]
!General Election
!Constituency
!Winner
!Runner up
!Margin
|-
|1962 (Third)
|[[Manjeri (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri]]
|M. MUHAMMAD ISMAIL SAHIB (the League)
|MUHAMMAD KUNJU (CPI)
|4,328
|-
|1967 (Fourth)
|[[Manjeri (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri]]
|M. MUHAMMAD ISMAIL SAHIB (the League)
|A. N. BEEVI (INC)
|107,494
|-
|1971 (Fifth)
|[[Manjeri (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri]]
|M. MUHAMMAD ISMAIL SAHIB (the League)
|S. P. MUHAMMED ALI (IND)
|119,837
|}

==Business career==
Ismail went into business in the 1920s and was involved in various commerce committees throughout his political career.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> He was a noted businessman of the [[Madras Presidency]] involved in leather and meat industry.<ref name=":2" />

The boards and committees he was a member of include:
* Madras Port Trust Board, Board of Industries (Madras), Madras Provincial Marketing Board, Madras Excise Licensing Board, and South India Railway Advisory Committee.<ref name=":1" />
* Industrial Planning Committee (Government of Madras), South India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (once Vice-President of the Chamber), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Court of [[Aligarh Muslim University]].<ref name=":1" />
* Indian Council of Agricultural Research (Hides and Skins), Hides Cess Enquiry Committee, Mica Enquiry Committee, Chairman (Leather and Leather Goods Committee, Government of Madras), Honorary Secretary and Vice-President (Southern India Skin and Hide Merchants Association, Madras) and, President (Madras State Mutton Dealers Chamber).<ref name=":1" />

==Legacy==
M. Muhammad Ismail died in 1972 (after a prolonged illness).<ref name="debate">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JVzVAAAAMAAJ&q=muhammad+ismail+|title=Lok Sabha Debates|publisher=Lok Sabha Secretariat|year=1972|page=274}}</ref> He was popularly known in [[Tamil Nadu]] and [[Kerala]] as the "Quaid-e-Millat" ("the Leader of the Nation"). <ref name=":3" /> [[Indian National Congress]] politician [[M. Bhaktavatsalam]], former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, paying his tribute, described Ismail as a "a model for all Opposition leaders".<ref name=":3" />

* The Tamil Nadu Government renamed [[Nagapattinam district]] as "Nagai Quaid-e-Millat" District in his honour (however, it reverted to its old name in 1997, when all names of persons were dropped from the names of districts and transport corporations).<ref>{{Cite web|last=Panneerselvan|first=A. S.|date=16 June 1997|title=Name Of The Game|url=https://magazine.outlookindia.com/story/name-of-the-game/203878|website=Outlook Magazine}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=DISCUSSION|url=https://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/lsdeb/ls10/ses2/1904129101.htm|website=Parliament of India}}</ref>
* In 2003, the Tamil Nadu Government constructed a memorial hall for M. Muhammad Ismail.
* A number of colleges in Tamil Nadu including the Quaid-e-Millat Government College for Women,<ref name=":3" /> Chennai and Quaid-e-Millat College, Medavakkam, Chennai have been named after M. Muhammad Ismail.<ref>{{Cite web|title=University of Madras: Aided Colleges|url=http://www.unom.ac.in/aided.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060221030604/http://www.unom.ac.in/aided.html|archive-date=21 February 2006|website=University of Madras}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2018}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ismail, Muhammad}}
[[Category:Members of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly]]
[[Category:Madras Christian College alumni]]
[[Category:1896 births]]
[[Category:1972 deaths]]
[[Category:3rd Lok Sabha members]]
[[Category:Rajya Sabha members from Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:4th Lok Sabha members]]
[[Category:5th Lok Sabha members]]
[[Category:People from Tirunelveli district]]
[[Category:Indian Union Muslim League politicians]]
[[Category:Lok Sabha members from Kerala]]
[[Category:Indian Union Muslim League politicians from Tamil Nadu]]

Bharatpedia - User contributions [en]

M. Muhammad Ismail