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Édouard Goubert (29 July 1894 – 14 August 1979) was mayor and first
A referendum on the future of French India was held in Chandernagore, the territory right outside of Calcutta, on 19 June 1949. Out of 12,184 registered voters (drawn from a population of 44,500), 7,473 voted for merger with India while only 114 votes were cast in favor of inclusion in the French Union. While a similar referendum was supposed to be held in the remaining four territories, those referendums never took place.Jessica Namakkal, Unsettling Utopia: The Making and Unmaking of French India (Columbia University Press, 2021)
Initially, Goubert attempted to negotiate a special status for French India that would make it autonomous from both France and India. However, neither the French nor Indian governments agreed to the demand. By 1954, Goubert shifted his loyalty towards the pro-India faction and supported the annexation of French possessions to the Indian Union. In March 1954, he traveled to Pondicherry and took part in an agitation demanding the merger of French India with the Indian Union. On 29 June 1954, his parliamentary immunity was abolished. On 1 November 1954, France signed treaties transferring sovereignty of French possessions to India, ending Goubert's tenure in the French National Assembly.
Édouard Goubert biography – French National Assembly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goubert, Edouard 1894 births 1979 deaths Puducherry politicians Indian people of French descent People of French India Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance politicians Indian National Congress politicians from Puducherry Deputies of the 2nd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Chief ministers from Indian National Congress Chief ministers of Puducherry Puducherry MLAs 1963–1964
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 ...
of Pondicherry
Pondicherry (), now known as Puducherry ( French: Pondichéry ʊdʊˈtʃɛɹi(listen), on-dicherry, is the capital and the most populous city of the Union Territory of Puducherry in India. The city is in the Puducherry district on the sout ...
between 1 July 1963 and 11 September 1964. Initially a strongly pro-French
A Francophile, also known as Gallophile, is a person who has a strong affinity towards any or all of the French language, French history, French culture and/or French people. That affinity may include France itself or its history, language, cuisin ...
leader, he later shifted towards the pro-merger 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 Em ...
, which ultimately became the death knell for the sovereignty of France's ''comptoirs'' (trading posts) in 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 ...
. He and Lambert Saravane
Lambert Saravane (1907-1979) was a deputy in the National Assembly of France between 2 June 1946 and 4 July 1951.
He was born on 17 September 1907 at Rettiarpaleom in Ozhukarai, in the territory of Puducherry, then part of French India; and ...
founded the French India Socialist Party
The French India Socialist Party (french: Parti socialiste de l'Inde française) was a political party in French India. The party was led by Édouard Goubert, Minister for General Administration for French India.Mukherjee, Amiya Ranjan. Current A ...
in July 1947.
Goubert was popularly known as ''pappa Goubert''.
Early life and career
Goubert was born in Pondicherry on 29 July 1894 to a French father and Franco-Indian mother. He received his education in French Indochina and studied Law in France. He began his career in the colonial administration and worked as a clerk at the Pondicherry Court. In 1951, he ran as a candidate of theDemocratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance
The Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance (french: Union démocratique et socialiste de la Résistance or UDSR) was a French political party founded after the liberation of France from German occupation and mainly active during the Fo ...
for the seat of French India in the French National Assembly (Assemblée Nationale). Goubert won the election with an overwhelming majority of 99.3% of the vote.
A referendum on the future of French India was held in Chandernagore, the territory right outside of Calcutta, on 19 June 1949. Out of 12,184 registered voters (drawn from a population of 44,500), 7,473 voted for merger with India while only 114 votes were cast in favor of inclusion in the French Union. While a similar referendum was supposed to be held in the remaining four territories, those referendums never took place.Jessica Namakkal, Unsettling Utopia: The Making and Unmaking of French India (Columbia University Press, 2021)
Initially, Goubert attempted to negotiate a special status for French India that would make it autonomous from both France and India. However, neither the French nor Indian governments agreed to the demand. By 1954, Goubert shifted his loyalty towards the pro-India faction and supported the annexation of French possessions to the Indian Union. In March 1954, he traveled to Pondicherry and took part in an agitation demanding the merger of French India with the Indian Union. On 29 June 1954, his parliamentary immunity was abolished. On 1 November 1954, France signed treaties transferring sovereignty of French possessions to India, ending Goubert's tenure in the French National Assembly.
Death
Edouard Goubert died in Asho inBangalore district
Bengaluru District was a district in the state of Karnataka, India. In 1986, Bangalore District was bifurcated into Bengaluru Urban district and Bengaluru Rural district
Bangalore Rural district, is one of the 31 districts in Karnataka, Indi ...
, Karnataka on 14 August 1979.
See also
*Coup d'état of Yanaon
The Coup d'état of Yanaon (Yanam) was a tense but ultimately non-lethal political coup at Yanam, India, in 1954. It occurred as India and France held ongoing negotiations regarding the future of French settlements in India. Yanam, along with P ...
* Puducherry Legislative Assembly
The Puducherry Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian union territory (UT) of Puducherry, which comprises four districts: Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahé and Yanam. Out of eight union territories of India, only three h ...
* Municipal administration in French India
References
External links
Édouard Goubert biography – French National Assembly
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goubert, Edouard 1894 births 1979 deaths Puducherry politicians Indian people of French descent People of French India Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance politicians Indian National Congress politicians from Puducherry Deputies of the 2nd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Chief ministers from Indian National Congress Chief ministers of Puducherry Puducherry MLAs 1963–1964