How an international marriage shook Nair society in the 1930s

Kerala now has among the highest rate of inter-caste and inter-religious marriages in India, but a century ago such unions were looked upon with utmost contempt. The patriarchy of the first half of the last century was even more stifling than it is now, and this was not restricted to Malayali or even Indian society. So, when Dr A Sankunni Mannadiar, a professor at Madras Medical College decided to marry a Scottish woman, it was an act of courage and defiance from both of them. It goes without saying that Anglo-Indians were made to feel like lesser beings by the British.

Dr Sankunni hailed from the wealthy landowning Ankarath family, which did not accept his marriage to a European. In 1933, his brother A Ramanunni Mannadiar, then district superintendent of police of the Cochin state, attempted to take the legal route to have him declared an outcaste.

The police officer filed a civil suit in the Trichur District Court requesting that his brother be removed from the management of the family’s properties on account of his marriage. “The court held that the marriage has not made him an outcaste and that he remained a member of the family and was competent to manage its properties,” the Pinang Gazette and Straits Chronicle (PGSC) reported in May 1933.

The Mannadiars are considered a sub-group of the broader Nair community, primarily from the Palakkad district, and traditionally held large land holdings and were considered to be aristocrats.

The PGSC erroneously spelt the family name as “Mannadinayar.”

During the legal proceedings, the Trichur court mainly relied on the testimony of A. Sankara Menon, a retired government advocate who said that the professor did not become an outcaste by marrying a Christian woman. He also said the Nair community did not oppose such marriages. Menon was the president of the Cochin Nayar Samajam at that time. “It is feared that a split will occur in the samajam on this caste question,” PGSC said in its report.

Members of the samajam then prepared a manifesto that said Sankara Menon’s testimony in court went against the spirit of the resolutions that it passed in a previous meeting. Several influential members of the society such as P. Damodara Menon and former Cochin legislators spoke against the advocate Sankara Menon.

The samajam had earlier asked all Nair members of the Cochin Legislative Council to oppose the Cochin Caste and Religious Disabilities Removal Bill and the Civil Marriage Bill. The latter called for the removal of caste and religious restrictions on marriages.

The marriage of the Dr Sankunni and the Scottish woman was probably registered in Madras, which was a part of British India and legally allowed such unions.

The manifesto prepared by the influential members of the Nair samajam called for action from the ruler of the princely state in the case of the medical college professor.

“The manifesto expresses the opinion that the decision in the suit is against the sentiment, opinion and practice prevailing among the members of the Nayar community, and appeals to the samajam and its branches to pass resolutions praying to His Highness the Maharaja of Cochin to protect the interests of the Nayar community,” the PGSC said.

Dr. Sankunni was probably able to win his case in court since he married someone from the race of the colonial rulers of the day. It’s highly unlikely that he would have had such support from influential members of Malayali society or had recourse in the courts if he married someone from a lower caste.

Without question, the struggles of the oppressed communities in Kerala went well beyond marriage rights. It wasn’t until 1936 that the Temple Entry Proclamation was issued by the progressive Maharaja Chithira Thirunal. Those living in the princely state of Cochin would have to wait till 1947 before being able to enter Hindu temples.

While Kerala and Malayali society is not entirely free of caste, communal and other prejudices, it is definitely one of the most progressive in India. Of course, there is no denying that a much greater degree of social reforms are required, but we can be grateful that the laws guarantee a lot more freedom than at the time of Dr Sankunni. Kerala is definitely one of the easier Indian states to register an inter-religious marriage at the moment.