Downloads: 1
Original Article | Arts and Humanities | Volume 15 Issue 4, April 2026 | Pages: 861 - 863 | India
Political Resistance to the First Communist Government in Kerala: The Liberation Struggle and Mannathu Padmanabhan?s Leadership
Abstract: The Communist Party was responsible for implementing the Land Reform Act and the Education Act. There were mainly three motives behind these Acts. First, Communist ideology was committed to the nationalization of schools and aimed at bringing an overall transformation in the educational field in Kerala. Secondly, the Communists intended to weaken the social power of the Christian community, as the Catholic hierarchy in Rome was opposed to communism. The Communist government in Kerala may have expected that the implementation of the Education Bill would reduce the influence of the Christian community. Thirdly, the government sought to improve the condition of teachers by ensuring regular payment of salaries and providing job security. During this period, the Communist government appointed an education committee to examine the existing school syllabus and recommend reforms. The objective of the government was to revise textbooks from Classes I to XII, with particular emphasis on Malayalam textbooks. The Christian community argued that the new syllabus reflected communist ideology and strongly opposed the move. They claimed that the newly introduced textbooks were intended to influence the youth towards communist ideology. The bishops of Kerala also publicly opposed the textbooks. Meanwhile, Christians, Nairs, and Muslims united in opposition to the policies of the Communist government. The provisions of the Agrarian Relations Bill seriously affected the economic interests of the Nair community. Although the Nairs had supported the Communist Party during the elections, some Nair members within the party opposed the Bill, which resulted in a serious split within the Communist Party. Under these circumstances, the Communist government decided to adopt a cautious approach towards the Agrarian Relations Bill. M. N. Govindan Nair, a member of the Legislative Assembly, announced that the Assembly would not immediately consider the Bill. However, the Bill was finally passed in June 1959. Following its passage, Mannathu Padmanabhan and other Nair leaders, along with Syrian Christians, strongly opposed the measure. The Christians also intensified their struggle against the Communist government, as they felt adversely affected by the Education Bill.
Keywords: NSS, SNDP Yogam, Mannath Padmanabhan, Movement, Communist Government, Struggle
How to Cite?: Dr. Arun A. S., "Political Resistance to the First Communist Government in Kerala: The Liberation Struggle and Mannathu Padmanabhan?s Leadership", Volume 15 Issue 4, April 2026, International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), Pages: 861-863, https://www.ijsr.net/getabstract.php?paperid=SR26413194214, DOI: https://dx.dx.doi.org/10.21275/SR26413194214