1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly election

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]

1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly election
28 February – 11 March 1957
All 126 seats in the Kerala Legislative Assembly
64 seats needed for a majority
Turnout65.49%
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader E. M. S. Namboodiripad P. T. Chacko Pattom Thanu Pillai
Party CPI INC PSP
Leader's seat Nileshwaram Vazhoor Trivandrum I
Seats won 60 43 9
Popular vote 20,59,547 22,09,251 6,28,261
Percentage 35.28% 37.85% 10.76%
Chief Minister before election

Position established

 Chief Minister

E. M. S. Namboodiripad
Communist Party of India

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. Furthermore, communalism and struggles against feudalism played a major role.[4][5]

Election

The Election Commission of India conducted elections to the newly created state between 28 February – 11 March 1957.[6] 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%.[7]

Results

The result of the elections listed below:

 Summary of results of the 1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly election [8]
Political partyFlagSeats
Contested		Won% of
Seats		 VotesVote %Vote % in
contested seats
Indian National Congress 1244334.132,209,25137.8538.1
Communist Party of India 1016047.622,059,54735.2840.57
Praja Socialist Party 6597.14628,26110.7617.48
Revolutionary Socialist Party 280188,5533.2311.12
Independent 861411.11751,96512.88N/A
Total seats126Voters89,13,247Turnout58,37,577 (65.49 %)

In the election, five women candidates were elected out of nine candidates.[7][9]

Government formation

Communist Party of India formed the government with the support of five independents.[10] 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 Cochin state before). But the government was dismissed in 1959 by the central government following the Liberation Struggle.[11]

gollark: Factorio has no "oxygen" mechanic.
gollark: They get in the way of transport belts and assembling machines and rail and such.
gollark: Sad. It must dislike me because of my general disdain for trees.
gollark: Do forests generally speak? Worrying.
gollark: Expedient retroactive trilateration.

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. 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. 15 October 1955. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  4. P Radhakrishnan. Peasant Struggles, Land Reforms and Social Change: Malabar 1836–1982. Radhakrishnan. p. 71. ISBN 978-1-906083-16-8.
  5. Communal Road to a Secular Kerala. Concept Publishing Company. 1 January 1989. p. 145. ISBN 978-81-7022-282-8.
  6. "History of Kerala Legislature". kerala.gov.in. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  7. "Key highlights of General election, 1957 to the legislative assembly of Kerala" (pdf). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
  8. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1957 : To the Legislative Assembly of Kerala". Election Commission of India. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  9. "Only 7 women make it to Kerala state Assembly". Economic Times. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
  10. Thomas Johnson Nossiter (1 January 1982). Communism in Kerala: A Study in Political Adaptation. University of California Press. pp. 122–123. ISBN 978-0-520-04667-2.
  11. "Fresh light on 'Liberation Struggle'". The Hindu. 12 February 2008. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
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