V. K. Krishna Menon
| V. K. Krishna Menon | |
|---|---|
| Defence Minister of India | |
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In office 17 April 1957 – 31 October 1962 |
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| Preceded by | Kailash Nath Katju |
| Succeeded by | Yashwantrao Chavan |
| Member of the Lok Sabha from Trivandrum | |
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In office 1971–1974 |
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| Member of the Lok Sabha from Midnapore | |
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In office 1969–1971 |
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| Member of the Lok Sabha from North Bombay | |
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In office 1957–1967 |
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| Indian Ambassador to the United Nations | |
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In office 1952–1962 |
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| Member of the Rajya Sabha | |
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In office 1953–1957 |
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| Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom | |
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In office 1947–1952 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon 3 May 1896 Calicut, Malabar district, Madras Presidency, British India |
| Died | 6 October 1974 (aged 78) Delhi, India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Political party | Indian National Congress |
| Alma mater |
Presidency College, Chennai Madras Law College University College London London School of Economics |
| Awards | Padma Vibhushan (1954) |
| Source | Parliament of India |
Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian nationalist, diplomat and statesman, described as the second most powerful man in India by Time magazine and others, after his ally and intimate friend, Jawaharlal Nehru.
Noted for his eloquence, brilliance, and forceful, highly abrasive persona, Menon inspired widespread adulation and fervent detraction in both India and the West; to his supporters, he was an unapologetic champion of India in the face of Western imperialism, who famously "taught the white man his place"; to his Western detractors, "Nehru's evil genius". U.S. president Dwight D Eisenhower characterised him as a "menace ... governed by an ambition to prove himself the master international manipulator and politician of the age", while Indian president K.R. Narayanan eulogised him as a truly great man; decades after his death, Menon remains an enigmatic and controversial figure.
As a young man, Menon served as co-founding editor of Penguin Books, and led the overseas wing of the Indian independence movement, launching the India League in London, aggressively campaigning within the United Kingdom to win public support for Indian independence, and rallying the support of such superpowers as the Soviet Union. In the immediate wake of independence, Menon emerged as engineer of and spokesman for India's foreign policy, and, more generally, architect of the non-aligned movement; he headed India's diplomatic missions to the United Kingdom and the United Nations, and distinguished himself in diplomatic matters including the Suez crisis. In 1957, Menon set the record for the longest speech before the U.N. Security Council while defending India's rights to the disputed territory of Kashmir, in the process earning widespread popularity and the sobriquet "Hero of Kashmir" in India.
Returning to India, he was repeatedly elected to both houses of the Indian parliament from constituencies as varied as Bombay, Bengal, and his native Kozhikode, Kerala, and served as a minister without portfolio, and later as Minister of Defense, overseeing the modernization of the Indian military and development of the Indian military-industrial complex, and spearheading the Indian annexation of Goa. He resigned in the wake of the Sino-Indian War, following allegations of India's military unpreparedness, but remained counselor to Nehru, member of parliament and elder statesman until his death.
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