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| caption            = B. Pocker
| caption            = B. Pocker
| birth_date          = 1890
| birth_date          = 1890
| birth_place        = [[Tellicherry]], [[Madras Presidency]]
| birth_place        = [[Tellicherry]], [[Malabar District]], [[Madras Presidency]]
| death_date          = {{death date and age|df=yes|1965|7|29|1890}}
| death_date          = {{death date and age|df=yes|1965|7|29|1890}}
| office           = Member of Parliament for [[Malappuram (Lok Sabha constituency)|Malappuram]]
| office             = [[Member of Parliament]], [[Lok Sabha]]
| parliament       =  
| parliament         =  
| majority         =  
| majority           =  
| term_start       = 1952
| term_start         =  
| term_end         = 1957
| term_end           =  
| predecessor     = ''Inaugural Holder''
| predecessor         = ''Inaugural Holder''
| successor       = ''Himself''
| successor           = [[M. Muhammad Ismail]]
| prior_term       =  
| prior_term         =  
| office1         = Member of Parliament for [[Malappuram (Lok Sabha constituency)|Manjeri]]
| office1             =  
| term_start1     = 1957
| term_start1         =  
| term_end1       = 1962
| term_end1           =  
| predecessor1     = ''Himself''
| predecessor1       =  
| successor1       = [[M. Muhammad Ismail]]
| successor1         =  
| party              = *[[All-India Muslim League|Muslim League]] (till 1947)
| party              = * [[All-India Muslim League|Muslim League]] (till 1947)
* [[Indian Union Muslim League]] (after 1947)
* [[Indian Union Muslim League]] (after 1948)
| death_place        = India
| death_place        = [[Kozhikode]]
| term1              = 1952–1957
| term2              = 1957–1962
| constituency        = [[Malappuram (Lok Sabha constituency)|Malappuram]]
| image_size          = 150px
| parents            = * Chalakkandy Peedikayil Kuttivatha Sahib (father)
* Badekkandy Mariyumma (mother)
}}
}}


'''B. Pocker''' (1890 – July 29, 1965), '''Sahib Bahadur''', was an Indian politician and social worker from [[Tellicherry]], north Kerala, [[Madras Presidency]].<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|jstor=1952972|issn=0003-0554}}</ref>
'''B. Pocker''' (1890 – 29 July 1965), '''Badekkandy Pocker,''' also spelled '''Poker''', title '''Sahib Bahadur''', as an Indian politician and lawyer from [[Tellicherry]], north Kerala, [[Madras Presidency]].<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= |volume=60 |issue=3 |pages=579–599 |doi=10.2307/1952972 |issn= |jstor=1952972|s2cid=143572105 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> He served as a member of the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] of India and as the [[Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha|Member of Parliament]] from [[Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency|Malappuram Parliamentary Constituency]] between 1952 and 1962.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Thottappuzha |first=Varghese John |date=27 November 2019 |title=Bharanaghadanayile 'Malayalam' |work=Malayala Manorama |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/news/editorial/2019/11/26/13-politicians-from-kerala-who-signed-up-in-Constitution-of-India.html}}</ref>


He was the second advocate from the Mappila community ([[Other Backward Class|backward class]] Muslims of [[Malabar District]], [[Madras Presidency]]).
Pocker was the first [[Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha|Member of Parliament]] (1952) from [[Indian Union Muslim League]] in independent India.'''<ref name=":22">{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=Roland E. |title=Mappila Muslims of Kerala: A Study in Islamic Trends |publisher=Orient Longman |pages=123 and 168}}</ref>'''


== Early career ==
== Career ==
B. Pocker was born in 1890 at [[Tellicherry]] in [[Malabar District]]. He studied at [[Government Brennen College, Thalassery|Tellicherry Brennen College]] and the [[Madras Christian College]]. He graduated from [[Madras Law College]] in 1915 and started practising as an advocate in [[Madras High Court]] in 1917. He was only the fifth university graduate and second advocate from the Mappila Muslims of Malabar District.
Pocker was born to Chalakkandy Peedikayil Kuttivatha Sahib and Badekkandy Mariyumma in 1890 at [[Tellicherry]] in [[Malabar District]], [[Madras Presidency]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kakkad |first=Haroon |title=B. Pocker Sahib: Samudayathinte Vakeel |url=https://shababweekly.in/b-poker/ |website=Shabab Weekly |date=24 February 2022 |location=Kozhikode}}</ref>  He carried his mother's 'house name' as his initials as the tradition among the [[Kannur|Cannanore]] Mappilas.


=== Montagu-Chelmsford reforms ===
=== Early career ===
Pocker, now a senior advocate in the [[Madras High Court|High Court]], entered politics in the late 1910s by arguing for special Muslim constituencies in Malabar District. He famously submitted a memorandum during the introduction of the [[Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms|Montagu-Chelmsford reforms]] (passed as [[Government of India Act 1919|Government of India Act, 1919]]).
Pocker studied at [[Government Brennen College, Thalassery|Tellicherry Brennen College]]<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=Roland E. |title=Mappila Muslims of Kerala: A Study in Islamic Trends |publisher=Orient Longman |year=1976 |pages=123 and 168}}</ref> and [[Madras Christian College]]. He graduated from [[Madras Law College]] in 1915 and started practising as an advocate in [[Madras High Court]] in 1917. He was one of earliest university graduates from the Mappila Muslims of Malabar District.<ref name=":12">{{Cite book |last=Miller |first=Roland E. |title=Mappila Muslim Culture |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=2015 |pages=37}}</ref>'''<ref name=":22" />'''


=== Mappila Uprising ===
Pocker, by then a senior advocate in the [[Madras High Court|High Court]], entered politics in the late 1910s by arguing for special Muslim constituencies in Malabar District. He famously submitted a memorandum during the introduction of the [[Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms|Montagu-Chelmsford reforms]] (passed as [[Government of India Act 1919|Government of India Act, 1919]]).
Pocker was a regional frontman of the [[Khilafat Movement|Caliphate Movement]] (he supported [[Shaukat Ali (politician)|Shaukat Ali]] at Madras by representing the Malabar District). He later led the relief activities for Mappilas, who were affected by the [[Malabar rebellion|Mappila Uprising]] (1921–22). He formed the "Mappila Amelioration Committee" at Madras, which collected and distributed more than two hundred thousand rupees among the Mappilas.
 
Pocker was a leader of the [[Khilafat Movement|Caliphate Movement]] in Malabar District (he supported [[Shaukat Ali (politician)|Shaukat Ali]] at Madras by representing the Malabar District). He later led the relief activities for Mappilas, who were affected by the [[Malabar rebellion|Mappila Uprising]] (1921–22). He formed the "Mappila Amelioration Committee" at Madras, which collected and distributed more than Rs. 200,000 among the Mappilas.


Pocker founded the "South India Muslim Education Society" and "Kerala Muslim Education Association". He served as the Parliament Party Secretary of the United Nationalist Party in the Madras Assembly from 1930 to 1936.
Pocker founded the "South India Muslim Education Society" and "Kerala Muslim Education Association". He served as the Parliament Party Secretary of the United Nationalist Party in the Madras Assembly from 1930 to 1936.


== In the Muslim League ==
=== With the Muslim League ===
B. Pocker was one of earliest leaders of the [[All-India Muslim League|Muslim League]] in [[Madras Presidency]] (along with [[K. M. Seethi Sahib|K. M. Seethi Saheb]], [[K. Uppi Saheb]] and [[Muhammad Ismail|M. Mohammed Ismail]]).<ref name=":02" /> He contested from the [[Kurumbranad]]-[[Kozhikkode]] [[Constituency]] (Muslim League). Though he lost the election to the candidate supported by [[Syed Abdurrahiman Bafaki Tangal|Bafaki Tangal]], the election campaign led by [[K. M. Seethi Sahib]] strengthened the Muslim League in Malabar. Eventually, Bafaki Tangal also joined, which spread the acceptance of Muslim League among Mappilas.
B. Pocker was one of earliest leaders of the [[All-India Muslim League|Muslim League]] in [[Madras Presidency]] (along with [[M. Muhammad Ismail|Mohammed Ismail Sahib]], [[K. M. Seethi Sahib|K. M. Seethi Saheb]] and [[K. Uppi Saheb]]).<ref name=":02" /> He contested from the [[Kurumbranad]]-[[Kozhikkode]] [[Constituency]] (Muslim League). Though he lost the election to the candidate supported by [[Syed Abdurrahiman Bafaki Tangal|Bafaqy Thangal]], the election campaign led by [[K. M. Seethi Sahib]] strengthened the Muslim League in Malabar. Eventually, Bafaqy Thangal also joined the party, which spread the acceptance of Muslim League among Mappilas.


=== In the Constituent Assembly ===
=== In the Constituent Assembly ===
{{quote box
Pocker was elected from the Madras Assembly to the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] of India in 1946 (Malabar - Urban Muslim).<ref name=":02" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Constituent Assembly Debates (Proceedings) Volume VII |url=http://164.100.47.194/loksabha/writereaddata/cadebatefiles/C30121948.pdf |website=Lok Sabha |publisher=Government of India}}</ref>
| width = 45%
 
| align = right
Following the partition of India (1947), the [[All-India Muslim League]] was virtually disbanded.<ref name=":02" /> It was succeeded by the [[Indian Union Muslim League]] in the Dominion of India.<ref name=":02" /> Even after partition, Pocker and his south Indian League colleagues remained with the League.<ref name=":02" /> Within a month, the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] voted to abolish separate electorates for Muslims.<ref name=":02" /> Pocker and K. T. M. Ahmed Ibrahim moved an amendment to retain the separate electorates.<ref name=":02" /> This motion was defeated in the Constituent Assembly.<ref name=":02" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Constituent Assembly Proceedings |url=http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/debates/vol4p3.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170716113228/http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/debates/vol4p3.htm |archive-date=2017-07-16  |website=Lok Sabha |publisher=Government of India}}</ref>
| title = Uniform Civil Code (CAD VII, 545)
| border = 2px
| bgcolor = ffffff
| quote = "There are ever so many multitudes of communities following various customs for centuries or thousands of years. By one stroke of the pen you want to annul all that and make them uniform...The standards of which community would be taken as the basis for the uniformity of the code?"
| author = B. Pocker, Sahib Bahadur, from CAD VII, 545 in
| source = ''Making Constitutions in Deeply Divided Societies'' (2011) by Hanna Lerner (page: 138) [https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/making-constitutions-in-deeply-divided-societies/776188B2504D72B79FA65B8F68347B2C]
| fontsize = 90%
}}
Pocker was elected from the Madras Assembly to the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] of India in 1946 (Malabar - Urban Muslim).<ref name=":02" /><ref>[http://164.100.47.194/loksabha/writereaddata/cadebatefiles/C30121948.pdf Constituent Assembly Debates (Proceedings) '''Volume''' '''VII''']</ref>


Following the partition of India (1947), the [[All-India Muslim League]] was virtually disbanded.<ref name=":02" /> It was succeeded by the [[Indian Union Muslim League]] in the Dominion of India (1951).<ref name=":02" /> Even after partition, Pocker and his south Indian League colleagues remained with the League.<ref name=":02" /> Within a month, the [[Constituent Assembly of India|Constituent Assembly]] voted to abolish separate electorates for Muslim.<ref name=":02" /> Pocker and K. T. M. Ahmed Ibrahim moved an amendment to retain the separate electorates.<ref name=":02" /> This motion was defeated in the Constituent Assembly.<ref name=":02" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Constituent Assembly Proceedings|url=http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/debates/vol4p3.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170716113228/http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/debates/vol4p3.htm|archive-date=16 July 2017|website=Parliament of India}}</ref>
== In independent India ==


== In Lower House (Lok Sabha) ==
=== As a Member of Parliament ===
Pocker was elected from Malappuram Constituency to the [[Lok Sabha|Lower House (Lok Sabha)]] in 1952 with Madras Muslim League.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=2019-04-06|title=History of Muslim League in Kerala and India|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-the-history-of-muslim-league-in-kerala-and-india-5660839/|website=The Indian Express|location=New Delhi|language=en-IN}}</ref><ref>[http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=1&search=P Parliament of India (official website)]</ref> He was elected to the Lower House in 1957 from Manjeri Constituency as an independent candidate.<ref>[http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=2&search=P Parliament of India (official website)]</ref>
Pocker was elected from [[Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency|Malappuram Parliamentary Constituency]] to the [[Lok Sabha|Lower House (Lok Sabha)]] in 1952 with the [[Indian Union Muslim League|Muslim League]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2019-04-06 |title=History of Muslim League in Kerala and India |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-the-history-of-muslim-league-in-kerala-and-india-5660839/ |website=The Indian Express |location= |language=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=B. Pocker (1952 - 57) |url=http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=1&search=P |website=Lok Sabha |publisher=Government of India}}</ref> He was re-elected in 1957 as independent ([[Madras Muslim League|Muslim League]]) candidate from [[Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency|Manjeri Constituency]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=B. Pocker (1957 - 62) |url=http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=2&search=P |website=Lok Sabha |publisher=Government of India}}</ref>


His efforts helped to win Indian Muslims exemptions from the [[Special Marriage Act, 1954|Special Marriage Act]], 1954. He served as a National Executive Member of the [[Indian Union Muslim League]] and Vice President of Kerala State Committee.
His efforts helped to win Indian Muslims exemptions from the [[Special Marriage Act, 1954|Special Marriage Act]], 1954. He also served as National Executive Member, [[Indian Union Muslim League]] and Vice President, [[Indian Union Muslim League|Muslim League]] Kerala State Committee.
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
|+
|+
! colspan="3" |1952 General Elections (Malappuram)
[http://www.indiavotes.com/pc/detail/175/5/1]
|-
|-
!
!Candidate
!Candidate
!Votes %
!Votes%
!Party
!Party
|-
|-
| rowspan="3" |[[1951–52 Indian general election|1952 General Elections]] ([[Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency|Malappuram]])
[http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=1&tab=15] [https://www.indiavotes.com/pc/detailsearch?eid=1&pcname=MALAPPURAM&submit=]
|B. Pocker
|B. Pocker
|39.0
|39.0
|[[Madras Muslim League]]
|[[Madras Muslim League|Muslim League]]
|-
|-
|T. V. Chathukutty Nair
|T. V. Chathukutty Nair
Line 85: Line 84:
|30.4
|30.4
|[[Communist Party of India]]
|[[Communist Party of India]]
|}
|-
| rowspan="3" |[[1957 Indian general election|1957 General Elections]]
([[Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency|Manjeri]])


{| class="wikitable"
[http://loksabhaph.nic.in/Members/lokaralpha.aspx?lsno=1&tab=15] [http://www.indiavotes.com/pc/detailsearch?eid=2&pcname=MANJERI&submit=]
! colspan="3" |1957 General Elections (Manjeri)
|B. Pocker
[http://www.indiavotes.com/pc/detailsearch?eid=2&pcname=MANJERI&submit=]  
|-
!Candidate
!Votes %
!Party
|-
|Pocker Kuttivatha
|43.5
|43.5
|Independent
|Independent ([[Madras Muslim League|Muslim League]])
|-
|-
|Kunhikoya Palat
|Kunhikoya Palat
Line 115: Line 109:
[[Category:1965 deaths]]
[[Category:1965 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian politicians]]
[[Category:Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:Indian Union Muslim League politicians]]
[[Category:Indian Union Muslim League politicians]]
[[Category:India MPs 1957–1962]]

Latest revision as of 06:38, 7 October 2025

B. Pocker
B. Pocker
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
Preceded byInaugural Holder
Succeeded byM. Muhammad Ismail
ConstituencyMalappuram
In office
1952–1957
In office
1957–1962
Personal details
Born1890
Tellicherry, Malabar District, Madras Presidency
Died29 July 1965(1965-07-29) (aged 74–75)
Kozhikode
Political party
Parent(s)
  • Chalakkandy Peedikayil Kuttivatha Sahib (father)
  • Badekkandy Mariyumma (mother)

B. Pocker (1890 – 29 July 1965), Badekkandy Pocker, also spelled Poker, title Sahib Bahadur, as an Indian politician and lawyer from Tellicherry, north Kerala, Madras Presidency.[1] He served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and as the Member of Parliament from Malappuram Parliamentary Constituency between 1952 and 1962.[2][3]

Pocker was the first Member of Parliament (1952) from Indian Union Muslim League in independent India.[4]

Career[edit | edit source]

Pocker was born to Chalakkandy Peedikayil Kuttivatha Sahib and Badekkandy Mariyumma in 1890 at Tellicherry in Malabar District, Madras Presidency.[5] He carried his mother's 'house name' as his initials as the tradition among the Cannanore Mappilas.

Early career[edit | edit source]

Pocker studied at Tellicherry Brennen College[6] and Madras Christian College. He graduated from Madras Law College in 1915 and started practising as an advocate in Madras High Court in 1917. He was one of earliest university graduates from the Mappila Muslims of Malabar District.[7][4]

Pocker, by then a senior advocate in the High Court, entered politics in the late 1910s by arguing for special Muslim constituencies in Malabar District. He famously submitted a memorandum during the introduction of the Montagu-Chelmsford reforms (passed as Government of India Act, 1919).

Pocker was a leader of the Caliphate Movement in Malabar District (he supported Shaukat Ali at Madras by representing the Malabar District). He later led the relief activities for Mappilas, who were affected by the Mappila Uprising (1921–22). He formed the "Mappila Amelioration Committee" at Madras, which collected and distributed more than Rs. 200,000 among the Mappilas.

Pocker founded the "South India Muslim Education Society" and "Kerala Muslim Education Association". He served as the Parliament Party Secretary of the United Nationalist Party in the Madras Assembly from 1930 to 1936.

With the Muslim League[edit | edit source]

B. Pocker was one of earliest leaders of the Muslim League in Madras Presidency (along with Mohammed Ismail Sahib, K. M. Seethi Saheb and K. Uppi Saheb).[1] He contested from the Kurumbranad-Kozhikkode Constituency (Muslim League). Though he lost the election to the candidate supported by Bafaqy Thangal, the election campaign led by K. M. Seethi Sahib strengthened the Muslim League in Malabar. Eventually, Bafaqy Thangal also joined the party, which spread the acceptance of Muslim League among Mappilas.

In the Constituent Assembly[edit | edit source]

Pocker was elected from the Madras Assembly to the Constituent Assembly of India in 1946 (Malabar - Urban Muslim).[1][8]

Following the partition of India (1947), the All-India Muslim League was virtually disbanded.[1] It was succeeded by the Indian Union Muslim League in the Dominion of India.[1] Even after partition, Pocker and his south Indian League colleagues remained with the League.[1] Within a month, the Constituent Assembly voted to abolish separate electorates for Muslims.[1] Pocker and K. T. M. Ahmed Ibrahim moved an amendment to retain the separate electorates.[1] This motion was defeated in the Constituent Assembly.[1][9]

In independent India[edit | edit source]

As a Member of Parliament[edit | edit source]

Pocker was elected from Malappuram Parliamentary Constituency to the Lower House (Lok Sabha) in 1952 with the Muslim League.[10][11] He was re-elected in 1957 as independent (Muslim League) candidate from Manjeri Constituency.[2]

His efforts helped to win Indian Muslims exemptions from the Special Marriage Act, 1954. He also served as National Executive Member, Indian Union Muslim League and Vice President, Muslim League Kerala State Committee.

Candidate Votes% Party
1952 General Elections (Malappuram)

[1] [2]

B. Pocker 39.0 Muslim League
T. V. Chathukutty Nair 30.6 Indian National Congress
Kumhali Karikedan 30.4 Communist Party of India
1957 General Elections

(Manjeri)

[3] [4]

B. Pocker 43.5 Independent (Muslim League)
Kunhikoya Palat 34.4 Indian National Congress
Mohamed Koya K. P. 22.1 Communist Party of India

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Wright, Theodore P. (1966). "The Muslim League in South India since Independence". American Political Science Review. 60 (3): 579–599. doi:10.2307/1952972. JSTOR 1952972. S2CID 143572105.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "B. Pocker (1957 - 62)". Lok Sabha. Government of India.
  3. ↑ Thottappuzha, Varghese John (27 November 2019). "Bharanaghadanayile 'Malayalam'". Malayala Manorama.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Miller, Roland E. Mappila Muslims of Kerala: A Study in Islamic Trends. Orient Longman. pp. 123 and 168.
  5. ↑ Kakkad, Haroon (24 February 2022). "B. Pocker Sahib: Samudayathinte Vakeel". Shabab Weekly. Kozhikode.
  6. ↑ Miller, Roland E. (1976). Mappila Muslims of Kerala: A Study in Islamic Trends. Orient Longman. pp. 123 and 168.
  7. ↑ Miller, Roland E. (2015). Mappila Muslim Culture. State University of New York Press. p. 37.
  8. ↑ "Constituent Assembly Debates (Proceedings) Volume VII" (PDF). Lok Sabha. Government of India.
  9. ↑ "Constituent Assembly Proceedings". Lok Sabha. Government of India. Archived from the original on 16 July 2017.
  10. ↑ "History of Muslim League in Kerala and India". The Indian Express. 6 April 2019.
  11. ↑ "B. Pocker (1952 - 57)". Lok Sabha. Government of India.
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