Kerala Legislative Assembly election, 1957

The Kerala Legislative Assembly election of 1957 was the first assembly election in the Indian state of Kerala. The Communist Party of India won the election with 60 seats. The election led to the formation of first democratically elected communist government in India[1] and second in the world after San Marino.[2]

State Reorganization

On 1 November 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, Kerala was formed by the merger of Travancore-Cochin state with the Malabar district (including Fort Cochin and the Laccadive Islands) of Madras State, Kasaragod taluk of the South Canara district and the Amindive Islands. The southern part of Travancore-Cochin, the five taluks of Agastheeswaram, Thovala, Kalkulam, Vilavahcode and Shencotta, were transferred from Travancore-Cochin to the Madras State.[3] After the reorganization, the assembly constituencies increased from 106 with 117 seats in 1954 to 114 with 126 seats in 1957.

Background

Following the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, the Malabar District of Madras state merged with Travancore-Cochin to form the new state of Kerala on 1 November 1956. The merger helped the Communist Party of India to increase their base in the region.[4] The ruling Indian National Congress lost the prominence due to the factionalism within the party.[5] Furthermore, communalism and struggles against feudalism played a major role.[4][6]

Election

The Election Commission of India conducted elections to the newly created state between 28 February – 11 March 1957.[7] The elections were held to the 126 seats (114 constituencies) including 12 two member constituencies of which 11 and one reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively, in which 406 candidates were contested. The voter turnout was 65.49%.[8]

Results

The result of the elections listed below:

 Summary of results of the Kerala Legislative Assembly election, 1957 [9]
Political party Flag Seats
Contested 		Won Net change
in seats 		% of
Seats		 Votes Vote % Change in
vote %
Indian National Congress 124 43 Decrease 2 34.13 22,09,251 37.85 Decrease 7.47
Communist Party of India 101 60 Increase 37 47.62 20,59,547 35.28 Increase 18.50
Praja Socialist Party 65 9 Decrease 10 7.14 6,28,261 10.76 Decrease 5.50
Independent 86 14 Increase 5 11.11 7,51,965 12.88 N/A
Total seats 126 (Increase 9) Voters 89,13,247 Turnout 58,37,577 (65.49 %)

In the election, six women candidates were elected out of nine candidates.[8][10]

Government formation

Communist Party of India formed the government with the support of five independents.[2] On 5 April 1957, E. M. S. Namboodiripad became the chief minister of Kerala and first non–Congress chief minister of the country( PSP Ruled travencore cohin state before) . But the government was dismissed in 1959 by the central government following the Liberation Struggle.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ James Manor (1994). Nehru to the Nineties: The Changing Office of Prime Minister in India. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-85065-180-2.
  2. 1 2 Thomas Johnson Nossiter (1 January 1982). Communism in Kerala: A Study in Political Adaptation. University of California Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-520-04667-2.
  3. ↑ "Reorganisation of States, 1955" (PDF). The Economic Weekly. October 15, 1955. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
  4. 1 2 P Radhakrishnan. Peasant Struggles, Land Reforms and Social Change: Malabar 1836–1982. Radhakrishnan. p. 71. ISBN 978-1-906083-16-8.
  5. ↑ G. Radhakrishna Kurup (2004). Politics of Congress Factionalism in Kerala Since 1982. Gyan Publishing House. p. 43. ISBN 978-81-7835-284-8.
  6. ↑ Communal Road to a Secular Kerala. Concept Publishing Company. 1 January 1989. p. 145. ISBN 978-81-7022-282-8.
  7. ↑ "History of Kerala Legislature". kerala.gov.in. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  8. 1 2 "Key highlights of General election, 1957 to the legislative assembly of Kerala" (pdf). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Statistical Report on General Election, 1957 : To the Legislative Assembly of Kerala" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
  10. ↑ "Only 7 women make it to Kerala state Assembly". Economic Times. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
  11. ↑ "Fresh light on 'Liberation Struggle'". The Hindu. 12 February 2008. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
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