Kerala - Kozhikode   

Freedom fighters honoured

Photo: S. Ramesh Kurup

GET-TOGETHER: Freedom fighters who were felicitated at the A. Balagopalan birth centenary meeting in the city on Tuesday.

KOZHIKODE: Memories of a bygone era when social workers were truly secular and untainted by corruption came alive as Congress workers got together on Tuesday to pay tributes to the memory of late A Balagopal, freedom fighter, who was in the frontline of Congress movement for Independence in North Kerala region .

The occasion was a function held at the Town Hall on Tuesday to mark the birth centenary of Balagopal who was a prominent Congress leader in northern districts when the struggle for Independence was waged.

The two-day birth centenary celebrations of Balagopal, father of former Forest Minister A Sujanapal, would conclude on Wednesday.

The contributions of Balagopal to the library movement in northern districts also figured in speeches at the programmes.

Mullappally Ramachandran, KPCC vice-president, who inaugurated a session to honour freedom fighters, described the late Balagopal as a true nationalist and secularist.

At the function Mr. Ramachandran also criticised Uttar Pradesh (U.P.) Chief Minister Mayavathi for her attempts to belittle the stature of Mahatma Gandhi. He said the U.P. Chief Minister’s critical statements on Gandhiji were politically motivated.

Emphasising the need for a corruption-free public life, Mr. Ramachandran noted with regret that all political parties and all fields of life had become vulnerable to corruption. He also sounded a note of caution against attempts being made to twist and hijack the history of freedom struggle, particularly the movement for Independence that was waged in the northern districts which were then known as the Malabar region.

Balagopal was a member of Malabar District Board, Kozhikode municipal council, and the first representative to get elected to the Assembly from the since defunct Chevayur constituency in Kozhikode.

Freedom fighters were honoured at a special session of the programme.

An exhibition of rare photographs and copies of documents on important moments in national and State history organised on the occasion was inaugurated by P.V. Chandran, managing editor of Mathrubhumi group.

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