V. K. Krishna Menon
Vengalil Krishna Kurup Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian academic, independence activist, politician, lawyer, and statesman.[1][2] During his time, Menon contributed to the Indian independence movement, India's foreign relations as de facto foreign minister, one of the major architects of Indian foreign policy, and acted as Jawaharlal Nehru's diplomat.
"Krishna Menon" redirects here. For the guru, see Atmananda Krishna Menon.
V. K. Krishna Menon
Constituency Abolished
Sachindra Nath Maity
Midnapore (1969–71) Trivandrum (1971—74)
Madras State (1953–56)
Kerala (1956—57)
Position established
3 May 1896
Thalassery, Kannur district, Madras Presidency, British India (now in Kerala)
India League and the Indian Independence Movement
Komath Krishna Kurup (father)
Lakshmi Kutty Amma (mother)
See awards section
In 1928, Menon founded the India League in London to demand total independence from the British rule in the Indian subcontinent. Towards the end of the 1940s, he presided Indo-British matters and caused the selection of the last British Viceroy of India, Louis Mountbatten.[3]
After the independence of India, he facilitated international diplomacy and resolutions in situations such as the Suez Crisis, Korean War, invasion of Hungary, Cyprus, Indochina, Taiwan, and the Chinese capture of American airmen, while supporting the anti-colonial ethos of what he would eventually name the Non-Aligned Movement.[4][5] Since the independence of India, he served as High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador to the United Nations, and Defence minister. As a Defence minister, he played a role in military conflicts such as Congo Crisis, Annexation of Goa, and Sino-Indian War.[6] During his tenure as defence minister, India saw establishment of domestic military-industrial complex and educational systems, the Sainik Schools, the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), and other defence and military institutions, while professionalizing the National Cadet Corps and similar entities.[7]
He wrote the first draft of the Preamble to the Constitution of India,[8][9] created the Constituent Assembly of India,[9] and worked with Nehru, Mountbatten, Sardar Patel, and V.P. Menon to work out the mechanics of Indian independence. Returning to India, he was elected to both houses of the Indian parliament from constituencies such as Mumbai, Bengal, and Trivandrum in his native state of Kerala. He remained a member of the Lok Sabha until his death.
Early life[edit]
Family[edit]
Menon was born into an aristocratic Nair family at Thiruvangad Thalassery, later moving to Panniyankara in Kozhikode, Kerala, where the Vengalil Tharavad maintained estates, including their sixteen-halled pathinarakettu seat. His family were Nairs.[10][11]
Education[edit]
Menon had his early education at the Zamorin's College, Kozhikode. In 1918, he graduated from Presidency College, Chennai, with a B.A. in History and Economics.[12] While studying in the Madras Law College, he was involved in Theosophy and was associated with Annie Besant and the Home Rule Movement. He was a member of the "Brothers of Service", founded by Annie Besant who helped him travel to England in 1924.[12]
Life and activities in England[edit]
Menon studied at London School of Economics, securing Bachelor of Science in economics and Master of Science in economics from University of London. Later, he studied at University College London and in 1930, he was awarded an M.A. in Industrial Psychology with first class honours from University of London, for a thesis entitled An Experimental Study of the Mental Processes Involved in Reasoning. In 1934, he secured a MSc in Political Science with first class honours from the London School of Economics, for a thesis titled English Political Thought in the Seventeenth Century.
In 1934, he continued to study law and was called to the bar at Middle Temple, marking the end of his formal education at the age of 37.[12] As a barrister, Menon represented poor lascas pro bono, and, Udham Singh, in his trial for the killing of Michael O'Dwyer in vengeance for the Amritsar Massacre.
During the 1930s, Menon worked as an editor for The Bodley Head and its Twentieth Century Library (1932-1935), for Selwyn & Blount and its Topical Books series, and then, from 1937, for Penguin Books and its founder Sir Allen Lane.[13][14][15][16] Menon was the editor of the educational series Pelican Books since its inception.[17]
Elections[edit]
1957[edit]
In 1957, Menon sought a seat in the Lok Sabha, contesting a constituency from North Mumbai. Admired for his defence of India's sovereignty in Kashmir on the world stage, Menon was met with rapturous receptions on the campaign trail, and won in a contest against PSP candidate Alvares Peter Augustus by 47,741 votes (171,708 to 123,967).
Legacy[edit]
Evaluations[edit]
Menon was a significant figure of the Indian politics during his life, and has remained so even well after his death. In response to US Secretary of State John Foster Dulles' assertion that US weapons supplied to Pakistan were intended for defence against a Soviet invasion, Menon stated that "the world has yet to see an American gun that can only shoot in one direction", and that "I am yet to come across a vegetarian tiger". In London, Menon responded to novelist Brigid Brophy: "my English is better than yours. You merely picked it up: I learnt it." When criticised for the Rolls-Royces he kept as official vehicles, he replied, "I can scarcely hire a bullock-cart to call on 10 Downing Street".[72]
Personal life[edit]
In private, Menon abstained from tobacco, alcohol and meat,[25] fasting for days, and forwent his luxury townhouse in Kensington Palace Gardens in favour of a single room in the Indian High Commission during his official tenure in London. As high commissioner, Menon drew the token salary of one rupee per month,[89] later refusing a salary outright.[90] Menon dressed publicly in bespoke suits, earning him the epithet "Mephistopheles in a Savile Row suit".[64]
Awards[edit]
In 1954, Menon was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan.[91] In 1968, he was awarded with the Syrian Örder of Merit by the Syrian President Nureddin al-Atassi.[92] In 2008 he was posthumously awarded with the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo.[93]