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The Lok Sewak Sangh ('Union of Servants of the People', abbreviated LSS), or Manbhum Lok Sewak Sangh, was a political party in Purulia District, West Bengal, India. [1] LSS was founded in 1948. [2] The party was the main political force in Purulia District from the independence of India until the fall of the second United Front cabinet. [3]

It is not to be confused with the Gandhian social movement by the same name.

Background

LSS had been set up as a local social movement in Manbhum, by leaders like Nibaranchandra Dasgupta and Bibhuti Dasgupta, who had been released from jail in the early 1930s. [4] LSS was a Gandhian movement working for Swaraj and social reform. [4] They challenged caste hierarchies, preaching to Adivasis and Dalits to participate in social and political life on equal terms with upper caste Hindus. [4] The organization sought to fight against discrimination against lepers. [4]

Foundation

LSS was constituted as a political party by former leaders of the Indian National Congress, who had played a leading role in the Quit India movement in Purulia District. [3] [5] Notable members of this group included Bibhuti Dasgupta and Arun Ghosh. [3] Through forming LSS they wanted to promote use of Bengali language in Bengali-dominated areas in southern Bihar state. [5] They labelled the imposition of Hindi language as 'linguistic imperialism'. [6] After breaking with the Indian National Congress its elected officials resigned and were re-elected on LSS tickets. [6] The party adhered to Gandhian socialism. [1]

1951–1952 elections

The party contested the 1951–1952 parliamentary elections as well as the first assembly elections, being able to defeat Congress candidates in some constituencies. [5] In the election to the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Parliament of India), LSS won the Manbhum South-cum-Dhalbum constituency, which elected two parliamentarians. [7] The LSS parliamentarians were Bhajahari Mahaton and Chaitan Manjhi. [7] LSS had fielded 4 candidates, won together mustered 309,940 votes (0.29% of the national vote). [7]

In the 1952 Bihar Legislative Assembly election, LSS fielded 12 candidates out of whom 7 were victorious. [8] The LSS elected legislators were Sirish Chandra Banerjee ( Baghmundi), Dimo Charmahar ( Purulia-cum-Hura), Samarendra Nath Ojha (Purulia-cum-Hura), Nitai Singh Sardar ( Manbazar-cum-Patamda), Satya Kinkar Mahata (Manbazar-cum-Patamda), Bhim Chandra Mahato ( Barabazar-cum-Chandil) and Atul Chandra Singh Bhuiya (Barabazar cum Chandil). [8] In total the 12 LSS candidates mustered 148,921 votes (1.56% of the statewide vote). [8]

Struggle for inclusion in West Bengal

Ahead of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, LSS organised a movement in 1955 to secure the transfer of Bengali-speaking areas of Bihar into West Bengal. [3] The party organized a march of satyagrahis by foot from Pakbirah village ( Manbhum District) to Calcutta, a 480 km walk. [9] The march lasted 16 days, gathering some 1,000 participants. [9] When reaching the vicinity of the West Bengal government headquarters, the march was broken up by police and participants arrested. [9] Some were jailed. [9]

After the reorganisation of the states of India in 1956, most of the areas where LSS was active became part of West Bengal. [5] As of 1956 the leader of the party was Sirish Chandra Banerjee, who became of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly in 1956. [5] In the 1957 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election LSS fielded candidates in all 11 assembly seats in Purulia District. [10]

LSS contested the 1962 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, fielding 11 candidates. LSS obtained 68,583 votes (0.72% of the statewide vote), winning 4 seats. [11]

United Front

Ahead of the 1967 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election LSS entered into a seat-sharing agreement with both the People's United Left Front and the United Left Front. [12] [13] After the election Bibhuti Dasgupta of LSS was named Minister for Panchayats and Social Welfare in the first United Front government. [14] [15]

LSS fielded 6 candidates in the 1969 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, winning 4 seats. [16] The party obtained 99,844 (0.74%). [16] After the election LSS politician Bibhuti Dasgupta was named Panchayat Minister in the second United Front cabinet. [17]

After the fall of the United Front

The LSS dominance over Purulia politics was broken after the fall of the United Front. [3] In the 1971 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election LSS fielded 11 candidates, but none was elected. [18] The party obtained 52,980 votes (0.41% of the statewide vote). [18]

The party went into rapid decline. [19] Most of its erstwhile supporters joined the Communist Party of India (Marxist). [19]

Relief work

In line with Gandhian principles, LSS ran relief activities in during food scarcities, floods and other calamities. [6] It ran an auxiliary organization, Muktiyuddho Sewak Sangh, to help former freedom fighters. [6]

Mukti

LSS published Mukti ('Liberation') as its weekly organ during many years. [20] [6] [21] The publication had been founded during the independence struggle. [22] Bibhuti Dasgupta, the general secretary of the party, edited Mukti. [23]

As of the early 1980s, it was issued in 1,000 copies and edited by Arun Chandra Ghosh. [20]

References

  1. ^ a b Anjali Ghosh (1981). Peaceful Transition to Power: A Study of Marxist Political Strategies in West Bengal, 1967–1977. Firma KLM. p. 25.
  2. ^ Jayanta Kumar Dab (2007). Local Politics and Indian Nationalism, Purulia, 1921–1947. Progressive Publishers. p. 244. ISBN  978-81-8064-136-7.
  3. ^ a b c d e Anis Kumar Majumdar; Bhanwar Singh (1 January 1997). Regionalism In Indian Politics. Radha Publications. p. 133. ISBN  978-81-7487-094-0.
  4. ^ a b c d West Bengal (India); Jatindra Chandra Sengupta (1985). West Bengal district gazetteers. Vol. 12. State editor, West Bengal District Gazetteers. pp. 104–105.
  5. ^ a b c d e R. V. Krishna Ayyar (1956). All India Election Guide. Oriental Publishers. p. 32.
  6. ^ a b c d e Journal of Gandhian Studies. Vol. 10. Gandhi Bhawan, University of Allahabad. 1983. pp. 125, 127, 129.
  7. ^ a b c Election Commission of India. STATISTICAL REPORT ON GENERAL ELECTIONS, 1951 TO THE FIRST LOK SABHA – VOLUME I (NATIONAL AND STATE ABSTRACTS & DETAILED RESULTS) Archived 4 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ a b c Election Commission of India. STATISTICAL REPORT ON GENERAL ELECTION, 1951 TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF BIHAR
  9. ^ a b c d Marcus F. Franda (8 December 2015). West Bengal and the Federalizing Process in India. Princeton University Press. pp. 55–56. ISBN  978-1-4008-7525-2.
  10. ^ Thought. Vol. 9. Siddharta Publications. 1957. p. 116.
  11. ^ "General Elections, India, 1962, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  12. ^ Profulla Roychoudhury (1977). West Bengal—a Decade, 1965–1975. Boipatra. p. 56.
  13. ^ Link: Indian Newsmagazine. Vol. 9. 1967. p. 16.
  14. ^ Asian Recorder. Vol. 13. 1967. p. 7634.
  15. ^ Subhash C. Kashyap (1974). The politics of power: defections and state politics in India. National Pub. House. p. 509.
  16. ^ a b "General Elections, India, 1969, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  17. ^ Communist Party of India (Marxist). West Bengal State Committee. Election results of West Bengal: statistics & analysis, 1952–1991. The Committee. p. 379. ISBN  9788176260282.
  18. ^ a b "General Elections, India, 1971, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  19. ^ a b Dwaipayan Bhattacharya (8 December 2004). Interrogating Social Capital: The Indian Experience. SAGE Publications. p. 148. ISBN  978-0-7619-3286-4.
  20. ^ a b West Bengal (India). Fact Finding Committee on Small & Medium Newspapers; Sasanka Sekhar Sanyal (1983). Report of the Fact Finding Committee on Small & Medium Newspapers, 1980. Information & Cultural Affairs Department, Government of West Bengal. p. 50.
  21. ^ Jayanta Kumar Dab (2007). Local Politics and Indian Nationalism, Purulia, 1921–1947. Progressive Publishers. p. 248. ISBN  978-81-8064-136-7.
  22. ^ Mainstream. Vol. 27. N. Chakravartty. 1989. p. 32.
  23. ^ India Who's who. INFA Publications. 1973. p. 248.
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