Elamkulam Manakkal Sankaran Namboodiripad (13 June 1909 – 19 March 1998), popularly known as EMS, was an Indian communist politician and theorist, who served as the first

Chief Minister of Kerala The chief minister of Kerala is the chief executive of the Indian state of Kerala. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Fol ...

in 1957–1959 and then again in 1967–1969. As a member of the Communist Party of India (CPI), he became the first non-

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

in the Indian republic. In 1964, he led a faction of the CPI that broke away to form the

Communist Party of India (Marxist) The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated as CPI(M)/CPIM/CPM) is a Marxist–Leninist communist political party in India. It is the largest communist party of India in terms of membership and electoral seats and one of the na ...

(CPI(M)). He completed his graduation from St. Thomas College, Thrissur

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. As chief minister, EMS pioneered radical land and educational reforms in Kerala, which helped it become the country's leader in social indicators. It is largely due to his commitment and guidance that the CPI(M), of which he was Politburo member and general secretary for 14 years, has become such a domineering political force, playing a vital role in India's new era of coalition politics.

Personal life

Elamkulam Manakkal Sankaran Namboodiripad was born on 13 June 1909, as the fourth son of Parameswaran Namboodiripad and Vishnudatha Antharjanam, at Elamkulam, situated on the banks of

Thuthapuzha Thuthapuzha River is one of the main tributaries of the Bharathapuzha River, the second-longest river in Kerala, south India. It flows through Malappuram-Palakkad district border. In Mannarkkad region the river is named as Kunthipuzha that flo ...

River, in

Perinthalmanna taluk Perinthalmanna Taluk, formerly known as Walluvanad Taluk, comes under Perinthalmanna revenue division in Malappuram district of Kerala, India. Its headquarters is the town of Perinthalmanna. Perinthalmanna Taluk contains Perinthalmanna Municip ...

of the present Malappuram district into a prominent Malayali

Nambudiri Brahmin The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Nampoothiri, and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of the traditional feudal e ...

family. His two elder brothers died before he was born, and the third brother was

intellectually disabled Intellectual disability (ID), also known as general learning disability in the United Kingdom and formerly mental retardation, Rosa's Law, Pub. L. 111-256124 Stat. 2643(2010). is a generalized neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by signifi ...

. He lost his father when he was five. During 1921 Malabar rebellion he moved to

Irinjalakuda Irinjalakuda is a municipal town in Thrissur district, Kerala, India. It is the headquarters of Irinjalakuda Revenue Division and Mukundapuram (tehsil), Mukundapuram Taluk. After Thrissur, this town has most number of administrative, law-enfor ...

as the belligerent attacked his house. In his early years, he was a close friend of Sr. P.M. Mathew. He was associated with

V. T. Bhattathiripad Vellithuruthi Thazhathu Karutha Patteri Raman Bhattathiripad (1896–1982), also known as V. T. Bhattathiripad, was an Indian social reformer, dramatist and an Indian independence activist. He was best known for his contributions in the reforma ...

, M. R. Bhattathiripad and many others in the fight against the casteism and conservatism that existed in the

Namboothiri The Nambudiri (), also transliterated as Nampoothiri, Nambūdiri, Namboodiri, Nampoothiri, and Nampūtiri, are a Malayali Brahmin caste, native to what is now the state of Kerala, India, where they constituted part of the traditional feudal el ...

community. He became one of the office-bearers of Valluvanadu Yogaskshema Sabha, an organisation of progressive Namboothiri youth. During his college days, he was deeply associated with the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

and the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...

. It is said he would walk 5–8 km to hear the firebrand Cochin politician V.J Mathai speak. He was well known for his stammer. When asked if he always stammered, he would reply, "No, only when I speak." EMS was married to Arya Antharjanam and had two sons – E. M. Sreedharan and E. M. Sasi – and two daughters – E. M. Malathy and E. M. Radha. His grandson (Sreedharan's son) Sujith Shankar is an actor.

Writings

He was a writer and author of several literary works and his book on the history of Kerala is notable. He described

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

as a Hindu fundamentalist. * EMS Athmakatha (E M S Autobiography) > Sahithya Academy Award winner, 1970 > * Mooladhanam: oru mukhavura * A History of Indian Freedom Struggle
Keralam Malayalikalude Mathrubhumi

Kerala charithram marxist veekshanathil
* The Frontline Years Selected Articles
Indian swathanthryasamara charithram

Gandhiyum Gandhisavum
* Gramscian vicharaviplavam
The Mahatma and the Ism
* History, society, and land relations : selected essays * Darshanathe Pati * Oru indian communistinte ormakkurippukal * Crisis into Chaos: Political India, 1981 * Marxism oru paadapusthakam * Charitravum Charitrarachanayum: Marxist Veekshanam * Achuthamenon vyakthiyum rashtreeyavum * Communist Party Keralathil * Asanum Malayala Sahityavum * Jathiyum Samudayavum Rashtreeyavum Yugangaliloode * EMS-inte Thiranjedutha Prasangangal * Kerala: yesterday today tomorrow

Socialism

In 1934, he was one of the founders of

Congress Socialist Party The Congress Socialist Party (CSP) was a socialist caucus within the Indian National Congress. It was founded in 1934 by Congress members who rejected what they saw as the anti-rational mysticism of Gandhi as well as the sectarian attitude of th ...

, a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

wing within the

, and elected as its All India Joint Secretary from 1934 to 1940. During this period, he was also elected to the

Madras Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members of whom are democratically elected using the First-past-the-post system. The presiding officer of the Assembl ...

(1939). He remained committed to socialist ideals, and his compassion towards the

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...

led him to join the

Communist movement The history of communism encompasses a wide variety of ideologies and political movements sharing the core theoretical values of common ownership of wealth, economic enterprise, and property. Most modern forms of communism are grounded at least ...

. The

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

considered him to be one of the

founders Founder or Founders may refer to: Places *Founders Park, a stadium in South Carolina, formerly known as Carolina Stadium * Founders Park, a waterside park in Islamorada, Florida Arts, entertainment, and media * Founders (''Star Trek''), the ali ...

of the Communist Party of India (CPI) in

, forcing him to go into hiding. During the 1962

Sino-Indian war The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tibet ...

, he was among leaders who aired China's view on the border issue. When the CPI split in 1964, EMS stood with the

(CPI(M)). He was the leader of the

state committee of CPI(M). He served as a member of the Central Committee and the Politburo of the CPI(M) until his death in 1998. EMS became general secretary in 1977, a designation he held until 1992. A Marxist scholar, he influenced the development of

, of which he was the first

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

Election to state government

Kerala Assembly Election Results A Communist-led government under E. M. S. Namboodiripad resulted from the first elections for the new Kerala Legislative Assembly in 1957, making him the first communist leader in India to head a popularly elected government. It was the second ever Communist government to be democratically elected, after Communist success in the 1945 elections in the

Republic of San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

, a microstate in Europe.) On 5 April 1957 he was appointed as the first chief minister of Kerala. His government introduced the Land Reform Ordinance and Education Bill. In 1958, a period of anticommunist protest, the

Vimochana Samaram The Liberation Struggle in Kerala (1958–59) was a period of anticommunist protest against the first elected state government in Kerala, India, which was led by E. M. S. Namboodiripad of the Communist Party of India. Organised opposition to ...

, began in response to the bills. The central government of India responded in 1959 by invoking Article 356 of the

Indian Constitution The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ri ...

, suspending state government and imposing President's rule. Initially, Prime Minister

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

was hesitant to dismiss a democratically elected government, but he was convinced by his daughter Indira Gandhi. Involvement by the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

's in the ouster has been long suspected. Declassified CIA documents show that the establishment of communist state governments in India concerned them and "preventing additional Keralas became an important argument for augmenting U.S. assistance to India". According to the biography of former US Ambassador

Ellsworth Bunker Ellsworth F. Bunker (May 11, 1894 – September 27, 1984) was an American businessman and diplomat (including being the ambassador to Argentina, Italy, India, Nepal and South Vietnam). He is perhaps best known for being a hawk on the war in Vietn ...

, "the election results rang alarm bells in Washington". Namboodiripad became the Chief Minister of Kerala for the second time in 1967 as the leader of a seven-party coalition ( Saptakakshi Munnani) which included the CPI and Muslim League. Soon after becoming Chief Minister again, on 31 January 1968 he inaugurated a mechanized coir factory called Floorco in Pozhikkara, Paravur. This time Namboodiripad's tenure lasted for two and a half years, and the government fell on 24 October 1969 due to internal conflicts within the constituent parties. Namboodiripad was the Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Legislative Assembly from 1960 to 1964 and again from 1970 to 1977. His vision of decentralization of power and resources (

People's Plan People's Plan Campaign, held in 1996 in Kerala State, was an experiment in decentralization of powers to local governments with focus on local planning. Kerala State lies in the south-west part of India. In India's Ninth Five-Year Plan, each s ...

) and the Kerala Literacy Movement influenced Kerala society. He authored several books in English and Malayalam. Chintha Publication, Kerala has published all his books under the title, "E M S Sanchika". He also was well known as a journalist.

As the head of ministries in the Kerala State Assembly

E. M. S. has led 2 ministries in Kerala.

Sino-Indian war and split in the Communist Party

During the 1962

, other parties portrayed left-wing parties as pro-China, since both were Communist. Namboodiripad stated that the left was focused on solving the border dispute through talks.

Association with Progressive Movement for Arts and Letters

Namboodiripad,

Kesari Balakrishna Pillai Akathoot Balakrishna Pillai (1889–1960), better known as Kesari Balakrishna Pillai, was a Malayalam writer, art and literary critic and journalist, considered by many as one of the most influential thinkers of modern Kerala. He was the eponymous ...

Joseph Mundassery Joseph Mundassery (17 July 1903 – 25 October 1977) was a literary critic and Indian politician from Kerala state. He specialised in the Malayalam language and literature. In Kerala politics, he is remembered as the Education Minister who w ...

, M. P. Paul and

K. Damodaran K. Damodaran ( February 25, 1912 – July 3, 1976) was an Indian Marxist theoretician and writer and one of the leader of the Communist Party of India in Kerala, India. Early life and education Damodaran was born in Ponnani in Malappur ...

were architects of "JeevalSahitya Prastanam", renamed Purogamana Sahitya Prastanam ( Progressive Association for Arts and Letters). Though the party considered Kesari one of the visionaries of the Progressive Movement for Arts and Letters in Kerala, serious differences of opinion emerged between full-time Communist Party activists and other personalities, namely Kesari and Mundassery. In this context, Namboodiripad famously accused Kesari of being a "

petit-bourgeois ''Petite bourgeoisie'' (, literally 'small bourgeoisie'; also anglicised as petty bourgeoisie) is a French term that refers to a social class composed of semi-autonomous peasants and small-scale merchants whose politico-economic ideological s ...

intellectual", an appellation he retracted. Namboodiripad also acknowledged some of the earlier misconceptions of the Communist Party with respect to the Progressive Literature and Arts Movement. This debate is known as "Rupa Bhadrata Vivadam", an important milestone in the growth of modern

Malayalam literature Malayalam, the lingua franca of the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puduchery, is one of the six Classical languages of India. Malayalam literature comprises those literary texts written in Malayalam, a S ...

Death

Despite his age and failing health, Namboodiripad was still active in political and social fields. He actively campaigned during the 1998 general election. Soon after the results were declared, he contracted

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

, and was admitted to the Cosmopolitan hospital in

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

, where he died at 3:40 p.m ( IST) on 19 March 1998, aged 88. He was cremated with full state honours in Thycaud electric crematorium in Thiruvananthapuram. Three more deaths occurred in his family within five years after his death, starting with his daughter-in-law Dr. Yamuna in August 2001, and later followed by his wife Arya Antharjanam in January 2002 and elder son E.M. Sreedharan in November 2002.

Bibliography

In popular culture

In the 2014 film '' Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil'', Sudheesh reprises the role of Namboodiripad.

References

External links

EMS Namboodiripad talking about how he became a communist in the 1930s and the development of the Indian communist movement
{{DEFAULTSORT:Namboodiripad, E. M. S. 1909 births 1998 deaths Chief Ministers of Kerala Communist Party of India (Marxist) politicians from Kerala Government Victoria College, Palakkad alumni Indian atheists Indian reformers Indian independence activists Malayali politicians Educators from Kerala St. Thomas College, Thrissur alumni Leaders of the Opposition in Kerala Chief ministers from Communist Party of India (Marxist) Chief ministers from Communist Party of India General Secretaries of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Kerala MLAs 1960–1964 Kerala MLAs 1970–1977 Kerala MLAs 1977–1979 Indian political writers Indian male writers Writers from Kerala People from Malappuram district 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers 20th-century Indian educational theorists Malayalam-language writers Indian political philosophers 20th-century Indian philosophers Indian economics writers Indian Marxist journalists Indian Marxist writers 20th-century Indian journalists Journalists from Kerala Recipients of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award Brahmins who fought against discrimination Anti-caste activists Prisoners and detainees of British India