Ganatantra Parishad
Ganatantra Parishad ( GP , "Democratic Association"), also All India Ganatantra Parishad ( AIGP ), was a regional political party in the Indian state of Odisha (then: Orissa). The party was founded shortly after India gained independence . The reasons for their emergence were widespread dissatisfaction among the people of the mountains of Orissa with the new government of Orissa under the leadership of the Congress Party . Members of the earlier princely dynasties played an important role in the party. In 1962 the party merged with the Swatantra party .
Party history
From independence to founding a party
After the independence of India and Pakistan on August 14 and 15, 1947, there were 26 princely states in the area of what would later become Orissa , which had had different degrees of autonomy at the time of British colonial rule . The largest of them was Mayurbhanj with about a million inhabitants, while the smallest had only a few tens of thousands. Some of the medium-sized princely states in the area of Orissa and Chhattisgarh merged on August 1, 1947 to form a state union, the Eastern States Union . This state union and also the states of Odishas that had stayed away from it (including Mayurbhanj) were shaken by social unrest in the months after independence. On the one hand, supporters of the Congress Party demonstrated for the connection to India, on the other hand there was unrest among the numerically strong Adivasi population. Finally, the rulers of the smaller princely states declared their annexation to India at a conference on December 14, 1947, while the rulers of the larger states only decided to take this step one day later after more intensive negotiations. The chief negotiator of the Indian central government, Vallabhbhai Patel , had put considerable pressure on the princes during the negotiations, which resulted in some protracted dissatisfaction and bitterness. On January 1, 1948, most of the former princely states in the area of today's Odisha were incorporated into the Indian state and administratively into the province or state of Orissa. Mayurbhanj was the last princely state to be incorporated into the Indian Union on November 9, 1948 (first in Bihar, later in Orissa). The prince received for the abandonment of their political power in return from the Indian state prerogative ( Privy Purse ), assured the guarantee of their property and tax privileges.
The dissolution of the princely states sometimes led to considerable economic upheavals. Many of the princely states had finely balanced economies, were economically relatively self-sufficient and isolated from the market. After its dissolution, there were significant price increases in many places, especially for rice . The personal rule of the princes and the proximity of the ruler was replaced by a relatively abstract, remotely controlled bureaucracy, partly made up of foreigners, whose attitude was often perceived as arrogant by the local population. Some of the social achievements that had existed in individual princely states (for example with regard to medical care) were discontinued by the new administration. On the other hand, the new administration often blamed the supposed stubbornness and uncooperativity of the local population for the transition problems.
In 1948 there were various riots among the local Adivasi population, which were put down by the police. Some demonstrators lost their lives and several were arrested. According to official figures, 14 people died in Kharsawan , a center of unrest, and other unofficial reports even spoke of a "bloodbath" with more than 100 fatalities. The agitation of the Adivasi in the mountains of Orissa went hand in hand with the agitation of the Jharkhand Party in neighboring Bihar (and partly Orissa), which was also largely supported by Adivasi.
Party formation and further development
In 1948 the dissatisfied founded a political party, Khoshal-Utkal Praja Parishad, with headquarters in Sambalpur . The political goal was to revive the Eastern States Union . Orissa's Congress Party-led government took police measures against the movement, which increased its following. In 1950, in the run-up to the upcoming elections, the party was renamed Ganatantra Parishad at a congress in Balangir , or was newly founded. The dissatisfaction with the new conditions mixed with a certain glorification of the earlier princely rule, so that the representatives of some earlier princely dynasties played a key role in the party. The former ruling Raja of Patna , Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo , became party president . The GP was therefore caricatured by supporters of the Congress Party as a “feudal”, reactionary party, led by “disgruntled princelings” . The Indian princes, however, only ever made up a minority of the party's leadership. Of the 51 MPs who were elected to Orissa by the GP after the 1957 election, 25 belonged to the Scheduled Tribes or Scheduled Castes , while 11 belonged to previous ruling families (three of whom were formerly ruling princes). 15 had normal "civil" professions.
In the all-India elections 1951-1952, 1957 and 1962, the Ganatantra Parishad was the second strongest party (after the Congress Party) in Orissa. Also in the elections to the parliament of Orissa in 1951, 1957 and 1961 it occupied this place with 20.5%, 28.7% and 22.3% of the votes respectively. After she had previously been in the opposition, she formed on May 22, 1959 with the Congress Party a coalition government in Orissa, which held office until February 21, 1961 and in which Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo occupied the post of finance minister.
Shortly after the 1962 election, Ganatantra Parishad merged with the Swatantra party, which was founded in 1959 .
Election results
The GP election results are listed below. The proportion of votes in all-India elections is based on all of India. In all-India elections, the party ran only in Orissa. The state had 20 constituencies for the Lok Sabha in 1951–1952, 1957 and 1962 .
| year | choice | be right |
voting share |
Seats in parliament |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 |
 Election in Orissa 1951 |
753.685 | 20.5% |
31/140 |
| 1951-52 |
 Elected Lok Sabha 1951–1952
|
959.749 | 0.9% |
6/499 |
| 1957 |
Election in Orissa in 1957 |
1,223,014 | 28.7% |
51/140 |
| 1957 |
Elected Lok Sabha in 1957
|
1,291,141 | 1.1% |
7/496 |
| 1961 |
Election in Orissa 1961 |
655.099 | 22.3% |
37/140 |
| 1962 |
Elected Lok Sabha in 1962
|
342,970 | 0.3% |
4/496 |
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e F G Bailey: The Ganatantra Parishad . In: The Economic Weekly . October 24, 1956, p. 1469–1476 (English, epw.in [PDF; 5.9 MB ; accessed on January 25, 2017]).
- ^ VP Menon : Integration of the Indian States . Orient Black Swan, Himayatnagar, Hyderabad (Telangana) 2014, ISBN 978-81-250-5451-1 , 7 The Orissa and Chattisgarh States, pp. 138–159 (English, bjplibrary.org [PDF] first edition: 1957). Integration of the Indian States ( Memento of the original from January 24, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Paresh K. Das: Read a story of 64 yrs of regional parties in Odisha. The Pioneer, April 22, 2014, accessed January 24, 2017 .
- ^ Suresh Prasad Sarangi: Role of RN Singh Deo as a Chief Minister: A Study of Coalition Government, 1967-71 . In: Odisha Review . April 2016, ISSN 0970-8669 , p. 90–95 (English, gov.in [PDF]). Role of RN Singh Deo as a Chief Minister: A Study of Coalition Government, 1967-71 ( Memento of the original from January 24, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Brief History of Odisha Legislative Assembly Since 1937. Website of the Odisha Parliament, accessed on January 24, 2016 .
- ^ Election Results - Full Statistical Reports. Indian Election Commission, accessed on January 24, 2017 (English, election results of all Indian elections to the Lok Sabha and the parliaments of the states since independence).
