A K G - Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan
The Unsung Heroes Of The Freedom Struggle Of India
A
K G - Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan
A K Gopalan was a prominent freedom fighter and communist leader in Kerala. He was a strong nationalist. Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan, called as comrade A K G. In the period of British ruling in India, A K G made several contributions for the independence period. His journey started from satyagraha and changed into communism. He addressed and identified all small issues of people who were faced by discrimination, inequality etc.
A K Gopalan was born on 1 st
October, 1904 in Peralassery at Kannur district. He was born in a reputed and
wealthy family in that period . After
his education in Brennan College, Thalassery after that he became a teacher. He
was inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's freedom movements, and he resigned from his
job to become a full-time freedom fighter for the country. His independent
movement journey started with the joining of Khilafat movement. He boycotted
foreign dresses when he got interested in khadi in 1928[1]. He
understood the pressure and pain India had undergone through 150 years of
British rule. In that period the average
daily income of an Indian was two annas[2]. Most of
the people were illiterate in that period.
Indian coffee house and AKG
The Indian coffee house is a
renowned restaurant in India. A K G, who is the founder of Indian coffee. It
started in the early 1940s during British rule. In the 1950s the board closed
down in different cities. On the basis of the decision, the board decided to
dismiss the employees. A large number of people lose their jobs. A K G decided
to give direction to the society in the different states. He organized “India
Coffee Board Workers Cooperative society”. Its first branch started in Bangalore in August 1957. In Delhi
they started a new generation on 27
December 1957. It expanded to the cities
of Pondicherry, Trichur, Lucknow, Nagpur, Jabalpur, Mumbai, Kolkata, Tellichey,
and Pune by the end of 1958. In Kerala there are two societies, Old
Malabar and Travancore-Cochin. Now the Trichur society registered in 1958. The
jurisdiction Trichur to Trivandrum. It is a collection of 50 branches .
Now it is a restaurant chain that is
run by a group of worker cooperatives. It has a major role in the Indian
people's style. It is a byproduct of communist and Socialist movement.
Kandothu assault
Kandothu assault developed in 1930
based on protest against over temple
entry. Kandothu has a famous temple that was constructed by a higher caste
group thiyya. In temple Kandothu, lower
castes are not allowed in front of the temple. Kandoth is located in Kannur
District. The community of the temple closed the road connected to the temple.
A K G recognized the people that discriminated against the community.
Indian National Congress
In 1927 he joined the Indian
national congress and began playing an active role in the Khadi movement and
the upliftment of the harijans. He was arrested for his participation in the
salt satyagraha. As a member of the AICC,
A K G attended the Haripura and Tripura sessions of the Indian National
Congress. He participated in the freedom fight from the starting point as
satyagrahi.
Satyagraha
In the period 1929, congress adopted
the famous independence resolution. Then the following
year 1930 started a new movement. The 1930 movement brought a large number of
people. On march12 Gandhi began his Dandi march with his followers. In Kerala
it starts from Calicut to Payyannur, a jatha under K. Kelappan. A K Gopalan
decided to join Satyagraham. His speech on Satyagraham is truly inspiring. Salt
satyagraha was against the increased taxes of basic needs of human
Inspires to be a communist
He went through a massive change
from satyagrahi to revolutionary. Every human had an inspiration for their
change. After the decision to become a freedom fighter, he resigned his
teaching job. To participate in Satyagraha, he secretly left his family and
went to Cannanore[3]. AKG
was sentenced to six months rigorous imprisonment. In the period of the Vellore
jail, AKG lost their belief in Gandhian ideology. In AKGs words: “Why is that
struggle waged for two and a quarter years with remarkable courage,
intelligence and magnificent self-dedication a failure? …According to leaders
like Babu Rajendra Prasad, the people were ready for sacrifice – to go to jail,
to under go brutality and hardship – but were not ready to suffer financial
loss. That was why the struggle did not succeed. According to them, the
struggle failed as the government realised this and confiscated property and
imposed heavy fines — this frightened away some. However, most of the people of
India do not have wealth to hoard or lose. It is they who should be in the
forefront of the freedom struggle. Their only assets are their bodies; they
have nothing to lose so they are ready for sacrifice. They do not suffer in the
freedom struggle even a percentage of their suffering in daily life. Why then
did they not participate in the struggle fully?”
AKG and others who thought in the
same way organized the Congress Socialist Party(CSP) in Kerala after 1934. The
CSP concentrated on the working class. He learned to organize unions, develop
strikes, and educate workers. One of the
remarkable mass movements was organized against the capitalist and feudal
landlords as well as foreign rulers. According to AKG, “The Congress Socialist
Party can deservedly take pride that it was able to strengthen the congress and
turn into a mass organisation”. The marxists within their rank got suffocated.
CSP was closer to communism. The
socialist parties of Malabar, Tamil Nadu, Orissa, West Bengal, and other places
started functioning as units of communist party.
Guruvayoor Satyagraha
It is a remarkable movement against
untouchability. In 1930, Congress started to struggle against untouchability
and other discrimination activities. In the meeting of Kerala Pradesh Congress
Committee (KPCC), Kelappan proposed a resolution on starting a temple entry
Satyagraha. AKG fully supported the resolution and “was happy that a struggle
against die-hard conversation was in the offing”. He was selected as the
captain of the Satyagraha in one part. He led the march of harijans. He addressed hundreds of public meetings. It involves marches,
protests, drawing national attention and support. It secured temple entry
rights for all castes.
Story behind the case of A K
Gopalan v. State of Madras[4]
He was detained under the preventive
Detention Act of 1950. He was detained in the jail from 1947 without any trial.
Madras government passed an order on March 1, 1950. Here the case does not follow the principles
of natural justice.
Mr. Gopalan filed habeas corpus writ
under article 32(1) of the Indian constitution against the order coming under
section 3(1) of the prevention and detention act. The action was violating his
fundamental rights under articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Indian constitution.
The case was heard by the
constitution bench of the supreme court. Chief justice Kania's observations are
established in article 21. It is satisfied regardless of whether the procedure is fair or just. Articles 19 and 21
operate separate space and cannot read together. Fundamental rights under
different articles are mutually exclusive and do not overlap. The decision interpreted ‘personal liberty’
in article 21, hardly referring the article only to physical freedom from
restraint and it does not include broader freedoms comes under article 19. The
decision upheld the constitutional validity of the prevention detention act,
1950. Section 14 of the prevention
detention act becomes unconstitutional as it violated article 22(5). In the
prevention detention proceeding does not include the right to be heard,
principle of natural justice. By the decision we can observe that article 19
specifies only to the Indian citizens but article 21 provides to everyone.
‘Law’ in article 21 is not equivalent to ‘law’ in the abstract sense embodying
the principles of natural justice.
Political career of A K Gopalan
In 1952, A K Gopalan was elected as
the opposition leader in the Indian parliament from Calicut constituency. In
1957,1962,1967 elected from Kasaragod constituency assembly. In 1971, he
represented the Palghat constituency. Joining the political party, he was in
jail several times during the freedom fight time and also after the independence[5].
Conclusion
AKG, a person who led the communist
party at the national level. He addressed the need for communism in our
society. He worked against the British brutality and caste system. His
marxist communism was based on the theories of
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels . It addresses the issues against the
class system. It criticized the concept of capitalism. It highlighted the
inherent inequalities and exploitation of the communities.
AKG and communist party members have
a crucial role in the development of the independence of the country. He became the champion of social justice. He
pushed the issues related to land reforms, equitable distribution of wealth and
economic opportunity to everyone. He was not directly involved in the drafting
of the constitution but he given a voice that we need to change.
[1] Page
12,https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.12786/page/n20/mode/1up?view=theater
[2] "Republic India Coinage". Archived from the original on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2011.Accessed 14 July
2011.
[3] CPI(M) report,CPI-M Remembers Comrade AKG!
[4] A K Gopalan v. State of Madras, AIR 1950
SC 27
[5] IN MEMORY OF A K GOPALAN, B T
Ranadive,People's Democracy,Vol. XXVIII No. 41 October 10, 2004
Closing Credit
Author- Malavika Zachariah
"The views expressed are personal. This article is intended for educational purposes and public discourse. Feedback and constructive criticism are welcome!"
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