B. M. Kutty

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B. M. Kutty
Born
Biyyathil Mohyuddin Kutty

(1930-07-15)15 July 1930
Tirur, Malabar District, Madras Presidency, British India
Died25 August 2019(2019-08-25) (aged 89)
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Burial placePaposh Nagar Graveyard, Karachi
CitizenshipPakistani
Alma materMohammedan College Madras
Occupations
  • Politician
  • Public servant
  • Journalist
  • Trade unionist
  • Peace activist
Notable workSixty Years in Self-exile: no regrets; a political autobiography
Political party
Colour photo headshot of Biyyathil Mohyuddin Kutty
Biyyathil Mohyuddin Kutty

Biyyathil Mohyuddin Kutty (

Madras from 1945 to 1949 to please his father and there he joined the Muslim Students Federation
. He left the college right after the final examinations and did not wait to receive his certificates. At the age of 19 he left his family and India for Pakistan, citing his "love for geography" as the motivation behind his move.

Kutty was associated with many

Governor of Balochistan. In 2011, former Indian bureaucrat and Minister of External Affairs Natwar Singh
launched Kutty's autobiography Sixty Years in Self-exile: No regrets; a political autobiography.

Early life

Kutty was born on 15 July 1930 at Chilavil–

Madras, in 1945.[2] However, Kutty described his time at college as not "comfortable" and stayed there for four years only to "satisfy [his] father".[2]

After the conclusion of his final year examinations in June 1949, he sent a telegram to his parents saying that he would return home, but instead left for

old notes with "Government of India" printed on them.[3]

In Karachi, another Malayali man helped Kutty find a job with Larsen & Toubro; after working there for three months, Kutty left for Lahore without telling anyone about his expedition. He did not wait for the confirmation at his company or the increment that was due with it; he collected his salary and bought the railway ticket.[3] He always wanted to visit Lahore to explore its cultural heritage, including the tombs of Jahangir, Nur Jahan, and Anarkali. He met a Malayali Hindu, A. K. Pillai, in Lahore who helped him find a job as assistant manager at Indian Coffee House.[2]

Political life

Kutty was influenced by the communist movement in Kerala and entered into political life at an early age by joining and becoming an active member of Kerala Students Federation, a local student chapter of the Communist Party of India, in the 1940s. He joined the Muslim Students Federation in 1946 during his studies at Mohammedan College of Madras.[2]

Kutty was associated with many left and centre-left political parties in Pakistan. He was a member of the Communist Party of Pakistan, which was banned by the Government of Pakistan in 1954.[4] Being a Malayali, he was able to work with the beedi workers of Malabar origin in Karachi without difficulty. He worked on behalf of their rights and organised their trade union.[4]

He was involved with the

military government of President Zia-ul-Haq. He served in the capacity of the joint secretary-general of the MRD for three years.[3]

Kutty worked with

Indus river in accordance with her wishes.[4] He later expressed his admiration for Deshpande and her peace activism by naming her as one of the dedicatees for his autobiography.[4] He worked for the betterment of the India–Pakistan relationship and was associated with multiple organisations that promoted peace between these two countries.[5] Kutty co-established and was the general secretary of the Pakistan Peace Coalition and was associated with the Pakistan–India People's Forum For Peace and Democracy.[4][5] He was a committed member of the Society for Secular Pakistan, launched in 2014.[4] He was also the secretary of the Pakistan Institute of Labor Education and Research (PILER).[6]

Balochistan

PM Bhutto to Kutty

Why did you come to Pakistan? Unlike the Biharis and the UP wallahs and the Delhi wallahs, you had no compulsion to leave that paradise called Kerala. It also has the politics of your liking. Then why did you give all that up and come here?

PM Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, 1973[3]

During his time in Lahore, Kutty became a member of the Communist Party of Pakistan and met many left-leaning political workers and leaders, including prominent Baloch politician Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo.[4] Kutty joined the National Awami Party (NAP) when it was founded in 1957 and became the political secretary of Bizenjo, retaining that position even when the latter served as the Governor of Balochistan from 1972 to 1973.[7]

In February 1973, Pakistani forces raided the Iraqi embassy in Pakistan suspecting that Iraq might be colluding with the Soviet Union to arm the Baloch insurgents.[8] Kutty came under suspicion by the Government of Pakistan because of his "unusual" credentials—a communist originally from Kerala working for a Baloch party and its leader and the-then governor.[8] Kutty was arrested at Islamabad International Airport on the charges of treason and spying for the enemy nation, India.[8] Almost a week later, Prime Minister Bhutto dismissed Bizenjo's government and arrested him on the suspicion that his government might be involved in arming the Baloch separatists. While Kutty was in prison and being tortured for his alleged crimes, his daughter, Yasmin Mohyuddin, was expelled from Bolan Medical College.[8] These events culminated in Kutty's writing an impassioned letter to Bhutto expressing his anger.[9] After receiving the letter, the Prime Minister called for Kutty to be brought to his house and asked Kutty, referring to his Malayali and communist origins: "Why did you come to Pakistan? Unlike the Biharis and the UP and Delhiwalas, you had no compulsion to leave that paradise called Kerala. It also has the politics of your liking. Then why did you give all that up and come here?"[9][8][3]

Autobiography

In 2011 Kutty published his autobiography Sixty Years in Self-exile: No regrets; a political autobiography, in which he narrated his journey from Kerala to Karachi and the reasons he decided to acquire the citizenship of Pakistan.[5] The book was launched by former Indian bureaucrat and Minister of External Affairs Natwar Singh.[5] Kutty dedicated his book to four women whom he admired the most in his life: his mother Biriya Umma, peace activist Nirmala Deshpande, politician and former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto, and Kutty's wife Birjis Siddiqui.[10] The title of the book was suggested by Deshpande in 2007.[4]

Personal life

Kutty married Birjis Siddiqui, an Urdu-speaking woman originating from Uttar Pradesh, on 21 January 1951 in a wedding ceremony in Lahore attended by five Malayalis. He remembered how he did not know the language of his wife but "it didn't matter".[11] The couple had four children.[12] Kutty's wife died in 2010.[13]

In 2015 Kutty suffered a

Ayurvedic treatment, which lasted over two months and helped him get back his normal speech.[14]

Kutty had deep affection for the Malayalam language. Contrary to popular practice by other Muslim students, he chose to study Malayalam in school as a second language instead of Arabic and studied Malayalam literature in college. He used to obtain and read Malayalam newspapers, Malayala Manorama and Mathrubhumi, as long as they were available in Pakistan.[15] He worked as a journalist for Mathrubhumi and reported from Pakistan for the newspaper.[16]

Death

After suffering from a prolonged illness and paralysis, Kutty died on 25 August 2019 at the age of 89. He was buried in

Salat al-Janazah, was recited earlier at Abu Hanifa Mosque in Gulshan-i-Iqbal.[17]

Bibliography

References

  1. ^
    News 18
    . 25 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Edmond, Deepu Sebastian (12 August 2011). "No regrets for 60 yrs out of Kerala". The Indian Express. New Delhi. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Phadnis, Aditi (20 January 2013). "Q&A: B M Kutty, Pakistan Peace Coalition Secretary". Business Standard. New Delhi. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Sarwar, Beena (28 August 2019). "The Humanist Who Was Pakistan's Malayali Comrade B.M. Kutty". The Wire. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d "BM Kutty, Pakistani politician with Kerala roots, passes away". Malayala Manorama. 25 August 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  6. ^ Menon, Meena (26 August 2019). "Kerala-born, Karachi-based activist BM Kutty's demise further diminishes movement for peace between India-Pakistan". Firstpost. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  7. ^ "The Lone Malayali Politician in Pakistan BM Kutty Passes Away". The Logical Indian. 26 August 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  8. ^ a b c d e Gupta, Shekhar (25 August 2019). An Indian's guide to Baloch nationalism, Pakistan's tiny Left & death of a Malayali named BM Kutty (video) (in English and Hindi). The Print on YouTube.
  9. ^ a b Bhattacherjee, Kallol (31 December 2017). "Jadhav's case brings back Kutty's story on Balochistan". The Hindu. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  10. ^ Rehman, I. A. (3 December 2011). "COVER STORY: Pakistan times". Dawn. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  11. ^ Menon, Meena (1 December 2011). "Prisoners of circumstance yearning to return home". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  12. ^ Ahmed, Ashfaq (25 August 2019). "Pakistani-Malayalee politician BM Kutty passes away in Karachi on Sunday". Gulf News. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  13. ^ "Malayali voice in Pakistan politics falls silent". The Hindu. Press Trust of India. 26 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  14. ^ Bhattacherjee, Kallol (8 November 2015). "A Mapilla in Karachi remembers his roots". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  15. ^ Roche, Elizabeth (12 August 2011). "Majority of Pakistanis are tolerant people". Mint. New Delhi. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  16. ^ "പാകിസ്താനിലെ മലയാളിയായ രാഷ്ട്രീയ നേതാവ് ബി.എം കുട്ടി അന്തരിച്ചു". Mathrubhumi (in Malayalam). 25 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  17. ^ Mansoor, Hasan (26 August 2019). "Peace activist B.M. Kutty passes away". Dawn. Karachi. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
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