'We are not honourable people', chairman of a Palakkad municipality declares
The declaration is not just an expression of democratic humility but also an act of rebellion against the LDF government.
The declaration is not just an expression of democratic humility but also an act of rebellion against the LDF government.
The declaration is not just an expression of democratic humility but also an act of rebellion against the LDF government.
On December 26, right after he took over as the chairman of Palakkad district's Chittur-Thathamangalam Municipality, Advocate Sumesh Achuthan made an unprecedented declaration.
"From today, this Municipality will do away with the honorific 'bahumanapetta' (honourable) that is used to formally address the municipal chairman, other members of the council and the secretary. It is the municipality's firm belief that we the public servants do not deserve any respect or titles denied to the ordinary citizen."
The progressive reform encoded in the chairman's declaration will have to be ratified by the Chittur-Thathamangalam Council. But this is just a formality as the Congress has a clear majority of 17 in a 30-member council.
The declaration is not just an expression of democratic humility but also an act of rebellion against the LDF government. In January this year, the Pinarayi Government had refused to ban the use of the word "bahumanapetta' in official settings arguing that such qualifications are part of basic courtesy in a democracy.
However, the municipal council led by Sumesh has looked at the issue through the lens of an individual's self-respect. "When 'bahumanapetta' is used in government notices or foundation stones or official correspondences, it becomes a reminder of authority. It becomes an obscenity," Sumesh said. The chairman said that the municipal council led by him wanted to dump all qualifications that reek of monarchy and colonial rule.
Not only will the chairman, councillors and the secretary shun 'bahumanapetta' for themselves but also while addressing important figures like the Chief Minister, ministers, the Chief Secretary, and even the governor.
The state government might have refused to ban the use of the word 'bahumanapetta' but has not made its use mandatory. So, even if those in authority feel slighted by a seemingly disrespectful official letter from Chittur-Thathamangalam Municipality addressing them just by their names, these VIPs will have no choice but to swallow the insult.
This "rebellion of democratic humility" can also feel like a rebuke to those who want to exhibit power. "Take for instance the inauguration of a state-level public event where the municipal chairman is also invited," said Boban Mattumantha, the Palakkad district chairman of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee's cultural wing Samskara Sahithi.
"In all the notices and formal engravings that would mark the event, the Chittur-Thathamangalam municipal chairman and members will not have the honorific 'bahumanapetta' preceding their name. I am sure the others with 'bahumanapetta' attached to them will be viewed with a bit of amusement. The contrast that emerges can make the 'honourable' men seem like show-offs," Boban said. He hopes that this embarrassment will one day force everyone in authority to stop wanting to be addressed as 'bahumanapetta'.
On the other hand, when the Municipality organises an event, everyone would be equal. There will be no 'honourable' men on the dais. "Even if the CM is invited, he will not be accorded the 'bahumanapetta' title. Like any other ordinary citizen, he will also be addressed just by his name," Boban said.
It was Boban who first wrote to the state government asking it to do away with the honorific 'bahumanapetta' and it was to him that the government wrote back its refusal to ban the word.