Khan Bahadur Khan Bahadur – a compound of khan ('leader') and bahadur ('brave') – was a formal title of respect and honor, which was conferred exclusively on Muslim and other non-Hindu natives of British India. It was one degree higher than the title of ...

Sir Mohammad Usman (1884 – 1 February 1960) was an Indian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

hakim Hakim may refer to: * Al-Ḥakīm (Arabic: الحكيم), one of the names of God in Islam, meaning "The All-Wise". * Hakim (name), an Arabic masculine name, including a list of people bearing this name. * Hakim (title), an Arabic name and title, ...

and socialite who served as the Minister of Home for the Madras Presidency in the Justice Party government of the

Raja of Bobbili Raja Sri Ravu Svetachalapati Sir Ramakrishna Ranga Rao KCIE (20 February 1901 – 10 March 1978) was an Indian politician and ''zamindar'' who served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 5 November 1932 to 4 April 1936 and 24 A ...

and as the first Indian acting Governor of Madras from 16May 1934 to 16August 1934. His name is often written Muhammad Usman. Usman was born into an aristocratic family of

Tanjore Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the G ...

in the

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including th ...

in 1884. He graduated from Madras Christian College and joined the Justice Party. He was elected to the Madras Legislative Council and later, to the Governor's executive council. Usman served as the member of posts and air in the Viceroy's Executive Council between 1942 and 1947. He died in 1960 at the age of 76. He was a part-time hakim or doctor in

Unani medicine Unani or Yunani medicine (Urdu: ''tibb yūnānī'') is Perso-Arabic traditional medicine as practiced in Muslim culture in South Asia and modern day Central Asia. Unani medicine is pseudoscientific. The Indian Medical Association describes Un ...

and used his influential position in the provincial administration to promote indigenous systems of medicine. In person, Usman was both tall and very heavy. He was once described by

V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Valangaiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri (22 September 1869 – 17 April 1946) was an Indian politician, administrator, educator, orator and Indian independence activist. He was acclaimed for his oratory and command over the English langua ...

as having a "magnificent frame", and Sastri's biographer says he was "of gargantuan size".

Early life

Usman was born to Mohammad Yakub who belonged to an aristocratic family of

More More or Mores may refer to: Computing * MORE (application), outline software for Mac OS * more (command), a shell command * MORE protocol, a routing protocol * Missouri Research and Education Network Music Albums * ''More!'' (album), by Booka ...

, Pg 247

in 1884. Usman graduated from the

Madras Christian College Madras Christian College (MCC) is a liberal arts and sciences college in Chennai, India. Founded in 1837, MCC is one of Asia's oldest extant colleges. The college is affiliated to the University of Madras but functions as an autonomous institu ...

and joined the

South Indian Liberal Federation The Justice Party, officially the South Indian Liberal Federation, was a political party in the Madras Presidency of British India. It was established on 20 November 1916 in Victoria Public Hall in Madras by Dr C. Natesa Mudaliar and co-founded ...

. Usman practised

and acquired a reputation as an efficient physician.

Political positions

Usman was elected to 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 ...

as a Justice Party candidate in 1920 and served as a legislator from 1920 to 1923. Usman served as the President of the

Corporation of Madras The Greater Chennai Corporation, formerly known as the Corporation of Madras (1688-1996) and Corporation of Chennai (1996-2016), is the civic body that governs the city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Inaugurated on 29 September ...

in 1924–25 and as the Shera of Madras in 1924. In October 1921, the

Raja of Panagal Raja Sir Panaganti Ramarayaningar KCIE (9 July 1866 – 16 December 1928), also known as the Raja of Panagal, was a ''zamindar'' of Kalahasti, a Justice Party leader and the Chief Minister or Premier of Madras Presidency from 11 July 192 ...

, the Chief Minister of Madras, established a committee on Indigenous Systems of Medicine. He appointed Usman, the Secretary of the committee. In 1922, this Committee concluded that

Ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repor ...

was based on genuine scientific theories and noted that its practice has been waning over the years. On 30 March 1925, Usman was appointed member of the executive council of the

Governor of Madras This is a list of the governors, agents, and presidents of colonial Madras, initially of the English East India Company, up to the end of British colonial rule in 1947. English Agents In 1639, the grant of Madras to the English was finalized ...

. He was elected president of the Muhammedan Education Association of South India in 1930.

, Pg 121 When the Raja of Bobbili took over as the Chief Minister or Premier of the Madras Presidency, Usman was made the Minister of Home in the provincial government. However, Usman resigned in 1934 recommending

A. T. Panneerselvam Rao Bahadur Sir Arogyaswami Thamaraiselvam Pannirselvam (1 June 1888 – 1 March 1940) was an Indian attorney, landlord, politician and leader of the Justice Party. He was born in a royal family of Udayar community from Thanjavur district, Tam ...

as his successor. Muslims of the Madras Presidency felt betrayed that Usman had not recommended a Muslim for the post and strongly opposed the candidature of Panneerselvam who was a Christian. Violent Muslim-Christian riots erupted in the province. Though the riots were eventually quelled, the incidents radicalized public opinion, both Muslim and Christian, against the Justice Party. In 1935, Usman became the first Indian President of the Rotary Club of Madras.

As Acting Governor of Madras Presidency

Usman served as the acting

from 16 May 1934 to 16 August 1934. He was the first Indian to act as the Governor of Madras.

Member of the Viceroy's Executive Council

The British trusted Usman and considered him loyal. He served as a member of the Indian Defence Council in 1941–42 and as the Vice-Chancellor of

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

from 1940 to 1942. On 2 July 1942, the Viceroy of India,

Lord Linlithgow Marquess of Linlithgow, in the County of Linlithgow or West Lothian, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 23 October 1902 for John Hope, 7th Earl of Hopetoun. The current holder of the title is Adrian Hope. This ...

, expanded his Executive Council to nineteen members, bringing in Usman,

Sir C. P. Ramaswami Iyer Sir Chetput Pattabhiraman Ramaswami Iyer (12 November 1879 – 26 September 1966), popularly known as Sir C. P., was an Indian lawyer, administrator and politician who served as the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency from 1920 to 1923, Law ...

B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...

, Sir Jogendra Singh, and Sir J. P. Srivastava. This took the number of Indian members of the Council to fourteen, with five Europeans. Usman was made the member for Posts and Air. Usman's political views, according to the next Viceroy, Wavell, were "such that even a hardened Tory might regard as reactionary", and Wavell later noted in his journal that Usman "believed that God never meant India to be independent". At a conference of Post Masters General shortly after the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Usman said of the need to improve postal and telegraph services "We have won the War. We have now to win the peace."

Death

Usman died on 1 February 1960 at the age of 76.

Honors

Usman was knighted in the

1928 Birthday Honours The 1928 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were ...

and made a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander ( GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No app ...

in the

1933 New Year Honours The 1933 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 30 December 1932. The recipients of honour ...

. On 14 June 1945, he was appointed a KCSI.The London Gazette
/ref> Usman Road, a thoroughfare in

T. Nagar Thyagaraya Nagar, commonly known as T. Nagar, and historically known as East Mambalam, is a very affluent commercial and residential neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is surrounded by Nungambakkam in the North, Teynampet in the Ea ...

Chennai 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 ...

is named after him.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Usman, Mohammad 1884 births 1960 deaths Tamil Nadu politicians Knights Commander of the Order of the Star of India Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Knights Bachelor Indian knights Indian Muslims Madras Christian College alumni Vice Chancellors of the University of Madras Unani practitioners Members of the Council of the Governor General of India