The Ganatanra Parishad (GP) or the All India Ganatantra Parishad (AIGP) was a regional political party based in

Orissa Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of Sch ...

state in eastern

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

from 1950 to 1962. This political party was formed by the former rulers of the erstwhile

princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj, British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, ...

s and big landlords. It was founded in 1950 and

Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo Maharaja Sir Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo KCIE (31 March 1912 – 23 February 1975) was an Indian politician and the last ruler of the princely state of Patna in Odisha before Indian independence in 1947. He was the President of the Ganatantra P ...

became its president. In 1962, this political party was merged with the Orissa unit of the

Swatantra Party The Swatantra Party was an Indian classical liberal political party, that existed from 1959 to 1974. It was founded by C. Rajagopalachari in reaction to what he felt was the Jawaharlal Nehru-dominated Indian National Congress's increasingly soci ...

. after the

parliamentary election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

Background

The roots of this party can be traced to the Koshal Utkal Praja Parishad founded in October, 1948 with its headquarters at

Sambalpur Sambalpur () is the fifth largest city in the Indian State of Odisha. It is located on the banks of river Mahanadi, with a population of 335,761 (as per 2011 census). Prehistoric settlements have been recorded there. It is the home of the Samb ...

. The first meeting of the Praja Parishad was held on 8, 9 and 10 October 1948 at

Balibandha Balibandha is a village located in Jhumpura Block of Kendujhar district in Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, ...

. In the annual meeting of the Praja Parishad at

Bolangir Balangir also known as Bolangir, is a city and municipality, the headquarters of Balangir district in the state of Odisha, India. Balangir has one of the best cultural heritage in India. It is also known as one of the finest places for tourists ...

in October, 1950 it was transformed into a full-fledged political party, the Ganatantra Parishad.

Performance in the elections

In the first general election in 1951, the GP won 0.91% of the total votes and 6 seats in the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

In the first general election to the Legislative Assembly of Orissa in 1952, the GP received 20.5% of the total votes and 31 seats in the Legislative Assembly. and its leader,

Shraddhakar Supakar Shraddhakar Supakar (14 September 1914 – 5 January 1993) was a social activist, politician and writer. He was a member of Odisha Legislative Assembly, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Supakar was a lawyer by profession. He was associated in differe ...

became the leader of the opposition. In the second general election to the Legislative Assembly of Orissa in 1957, the GP received 28.74% of the total votes and 51 seats in the Legislative Assembly. Its leader, Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo became the leader of the opposition. After the fall of the minority

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 a ...

government, the GP formed a coalition government with the Congress on 22 May 1959. Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo became its finance minister. The coalition government collapsed on 21 February 1961 and the

President's rule In India, President's rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct Union government rule in a state. Under Article 356 of the Constitution of India, if a state government is unable to function according to Constitutional ...

was imposed. In the third general election to the Legislative Assembly of Orissa in 1961, the GP received 22.34% of the total votes and 37 seats in the Legislative Assembly and Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo again became the leader of the opposition.

Notes

{{reflist Defunct political parties in Odisha Conservative parties in India 1950 establishments in Orissa Political parties established in 1950