Dewan ''Dewan'' (also known as ''diwan'', sometimes spelled ''devan'' or ''divan'') designated a powerful government official, minister, or ruler. A ''dewan'' was the head of a state institution of the same name (see Divan). Diwans belonged to the el ...

Khan Bahadur Khan Bahadur – a compound of ''Khan'' "Leader" and ''Bahadur'' "Brave" – was an honorary title in British India conferred on Indian subjects who were adherents of Islam or Zoroastrianism. The equivalent title for Hindus, Buddhists and India ...

P. Khalifullah (1888–1950), was a politician of the

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, who served as the minister for public works in the short-lived ministry of

Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu Rao Bahadur Sir Kurma Venkatareddi Naidu KCSI (1875–1942), also known as K. V. Reddi Naidu, was an Indian politician, lawyer, diplomat, and academic. He served as the Premier of Madras Presidency and was one of only two Indians to hold the p ...

from April–July 1937. He was belonging to the

Rowther The Rowther (anglicised as ''Irauttar'', ''Rawther, Ravuttar,'' ''Ravutta'', ''Ravuthar, Ravuthamar'') are a distinct Muslim community living largely in the south Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. While some of them are partially descende ...

community, and his father (T.A. Pitchai Rowther) was a wealthy businessman of

Tiruchirapalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of Ta ...

. Born in 1888 in Tiruchi into a wealthy rice merchant's family, his birth name was Mohamed Pichai Rowther Ibrahim Khalifullah. He went on to be known by the honorific

, a title bestowed on him by the British. In later years, his work as the

of Pudukottai made him more popular as ‘Dewan Khalifullah.’

Early life

P. Khalifullah's early education was in present-day

Tiruchirappalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...

, and then he did his post-graduation at Madras University. He is thought to be the first south Indian Muslim to obtain a master's degree in 1913. "My father was a man of vision, and was very keen to educate all his sons," says Kutbuddin, his youngest son. "Being educated then was a way to help others in life." P. Khalifullah decided to study law soon after and sailed for Britain. But it was to be a tragic sojourn as he had to return to India within a month to attend his father's funeral. "The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 put paid to my father’s plans to study law in Britain, so he completed his studies in Madras Law College in 1929 and became an advocate in the Madras High Court," says Kutbuddin. P. Khalifullah was married when he was 13 years old to Varsaisammal (8), and the couple had 12 children.

Social attributes

"My father never pampered any of his family members," says Kutbuddin. "Every year, he would stitch clothes for 10–15 street children at the same time and using the same fabric as for his own children," he adds. "We all loved him, but our relationship with him was a little formal. In fact, his younger brother would not even sit down in his presence, such was the respect he commanded." The family's ancestral home in Pakkali Street, Bheema Nagar was large, and it was not unusual for at least 50–100 guests to be served a meal there at any given day. "On the 26th fast of every Ramzan, he used to serve food to thousands of people from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Around 350 measures of rice used to be cooked for this annual event. My mother stayed out of the public eye, but she was the one who took charge of the home," says Kutbuddin.

Political life

Elected to Madras Presidency Legislature in 1930 as a

Muslim League Muslim League may refer to: Political parties British India *All-India Muslim League, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan ** Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organization above **Unionist Muslim L ...

candidate, P. Khalifullah nurtured an activist side to him. He was a keen advocate of secular education for Muslims in the south, and was a convenor of the Khilafat Movement (1919–24). He was the Councillor in the Tiruchirappalli City Municipal Corporation for over 20 years, and also served as its chairman for two terms. Other highlights in his political career include the membership of the Madras Presidency Legislative Council from 1930 to 1936, and a stint in 1937 as the Public Works Minister under the leadership of K. Venkata Reddy Naidu. He was personally close to Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, K.A.P. Viswnatham, P.T. Rajan and Sir A.T. Panneerselvam, with political affiliations obviously no impediment to their friendship. P. Khalifullah was openly supportive of Periyar's Self-Respect movement, though not of its atheist tenets. He was a vocal opponent of the introduction of compulsory Hindi lessons in the south, and with Periyar, flagged off the 100 Anti-Hindi Volunteers march in 1938. Later on, though, he dissociated himself from the demand for a separate ‘Dravida Nadu’ by the Dravidian Movement as also Mohamed Ali Jinnah's move for partition. He belonged to the

All-India Muslim League The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was a political party founded in 1906 in Dhaka, British India with the goal of securing Muslims, Muslim interests in South Asia. Although initially espousing a united India with interfaith unity, the Muslim L ...

and was elected to the

Madras Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members, all of whom are democratically elected using the first-past-the-post system. The presiding officer of t ...

from

in the

1937 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1937. Asia * 1937 Philippine local elections * 1937 Iranian legislative election * 1937 Soviet Union legislative election India * 1937 Indian provincial elections * 1937 Madras Presidency legislative a ...

. He was sympathetic to the cause of

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy Erode Venkatappa Ramasamy (17 September 187924 December 1973), commonly known as Periyar, was an Indian social activist and politician. He was the organizer of the Self-Respect Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam and is considered the architect o ...

(Periyar) and his

Self-Respect Movement The Self-Respect Movement is a popular human rights movement originating in South India aimed at achieving social equality for those oppressed by the Indian caste system, advocating for lower castes to develop self-respect. It was founded in ...

. In 1937, he spoke against the introduction of compulsory Hindi classes in the Madras legislature and later participated in the anti-Hindi agitation started by Periyar. He was a lawyer by profession and was known by his honorifics as ''Khan Bahadur P. Khalifulla Sahib Bahadur''. He was also a member of the

Madras Legislative Council Tamil Nadu Legislative Council was the upper house of the former bicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It began its existence as Madras Legislative Council, the first provincial legislature for Madras Presidency. It was initia ...

during the early 1930s. He was the Dewan of Pudukottai after his withdrawal from political work.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalifullah, P. Tamil Nadu ministers Tamil Muslims People from Tamil Nadu Indian Muslims 1950 deaths 1888 births Khan Bahadurs