A. J. John
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Shri Anaparambil Joseph John (18 July 1893 - 30 September 1957), Indian nationalist, independence activist and politician. He was Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin and Governor of Madras (now Tamil Nadu).
Born at Thalayolaparambu, near Vaikom, in Kottayam, Kerala, he started his career as an advocateCitation needed. In 1931 he joined the Indian National CongressCitation needed and became a leader in the independence movement.
In 1936 he was elected to the Travancore Legislative Council from Vaikom. He was imprisoned twice in 1938 due to his involvement in the independence movement.
On September 4, 1947, the Travancore Constituent Assembly was declared by the Maharajah of Travancore as a result of the "Struggle for Representative Government" (Utharavada bharanam). Following elections in February of 1948 which saw the Indian National Congress win 97 of 120 seats, the Assembly sat for the first time on March 20, 1948 with A. J. John serving as President. The first Assembly formed on the basis of universal adult franchise in India, it became a Legislative Assembly on March 24 at the declaration of the Raja[1].
In July 1949 he became the Finance and Revenue Minister in the Parur T. K. Narayana Pillai Ministry, serving until September 1951[2].
In the first general elections of 1951 held in India from 10 December 1951 to 5 January 1952, he ran for the Indian National Congress Party in the seat of Poonjar. He won the state seat with 19,304 votes out of 32,643 valid votes, while overall, out of the 108 seats, Congress got 44 seats (3 uncontested), Socialist Party 11 (1 uncontested), Communist Party 25, R. S. P. 6, Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress 8, K. S. P. and Cochin Party 1 each, and Independents 12.[3].
A. J. John was sworn in as the Chief Minister of the Travancore-Cochin on March 12, 1952, leading the state from March 1952 up to September 1953, and as caretaker leader until March 1954 following the loss of a no confidence motion by the Indian National Congress Party and subsequent dissolution of the Assembly[4]. He was, thus, the longest serving Chief Minister of the Travancore-Cochin State.
In the last Ministry for the Travancore-Cochin State before it became the State of Kerala, he served as the Home Minister[5]. During his last days he served as the Governor of Madras (now Tamil Nadu), and died in harness[6].
[edit] References
- ^ Govt. of Kerala, Public Relations Dept., History of Kerala Legislature, <http://www.kerala.gov.in/ele_rep/ele_51.htm>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- ^ Govt. of Kerala, Public Relations Dept., Ministers since 1949, <http://www.prd.kerala.gov.in/ministers49.htm>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- ^ Election Commision of India, Statistical Report on General Election, 1951 to the Legislative Assembly of Travancore Cochin, <http://www.eci.gov.in/StatisticalReports/SE_1951/StatRep_51_TRAV-COCH.pdf>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008Govt. of Kerala, Dept. of Public Relations, Elections To The Travancore-Cochin Legislative Assembly 1951 And To The Madras Assembly Constituencies In The Malabar Area, <http://www.kerala.gov.in/ele_rep/1951.pdf>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- ^ Govt. of Kerala, Public Relations Dept., History of Kerala Legislature, <http://www.kerala.gov.in/ele_rep/ele_51.htm>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- ^ Govt. of Kerala, Public Relations Dept., Ministers since 1949, <http://www.prd.kerala.gov.in/ministers49.htm>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- ^ Governor of Tamil Nadu, Governor's Secretariat, Past Governors of Tamil Nadu, <http://www.tnrajbhavan.gov.in/PastGovernors.htm>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
- www.keralaassembly.org, History of Legislative Bodies in Kerala - Bicameralism, <http://www.keralaassembly.org/history/bicameral.html>. Retrieved on 12 April 2008
