Freedom Movement

Kannur district has played an important role in all the political movements of recent times. The Indian National Congress, which was founded in 1885, captured the attention of the people of this district from its very inception. A district committee came into existence in Malabar in 1908.
A branch of the All India Home Rule League, Founded by Dr. Annie Beasant, functioned in Thalassery during this period and among its active workers was V.K. Krishna Menon.

The decision of the Nagpur Congress to give up constitutional methods of agitation and resort to Non-Violent Non Co-operation as a means of achieving Swaraj,led to widespread boycott of foreign goods, courts of law and educational institutions in Kannur.

Mahatma Gandhi and Maulana Shaukat Ali toured the district to carry the message of the Non-Co-operation and Khilaphat Movements. The Khilaphat movement coincided with the famous Malabar Rebellion of 1921 which was put down by the British with an iron hand.