Panampilly Govinda Menon
Panampilly Govinda Menon (Malayalam: പനമ്പിള്ളി ഗോവിന്ദമേനോന്) (1 October 1906 – 23 May 1970) was an Indian politician, freedom fighter, and lawyer. He was born at Chalakudy and started his lawyer practice there as a junior to Adv. M. C. Joseph (a rationalist). He was the first treasurer of Kerala Yukthivadi Sangham. He moved his practice to Ernakulam afterwards. Later in the 1930s he became prominent in the politics of the Kingdom of Cochin and served briefly as the Prime minister of Cochin state in 1947.
After the union of Travancore and Cochin, he served as minister for education under Parur T. K. Narayana Pillai and minister for finance under A. J. John, Anaparambil. He was the Chief Minister of Travancore-Cochin in 1955–1956, but resigned after provoking internal squabbling among his own party members. After the resignation, the state was ruled by Presidential decree for more than a year, and later he was defeated in the Assembly elections at Chalakudy in 1957 by C. G. Janardhanan of the Praja Socialist Party. A. R. Menon (Communist Party), T. M. Varghese, Thandaneth (Congress), and Pattom A. Thanu Pillai (PSP) worked against his candidature. This effectively resulted in his eviction from state politics.
He represented Mukundapuram (Lok Sabha constituency) from 1962 till his death. In 1967, he was the lone Congress parliamentarian to get elected from Kerala. He became Union Minister for Law and Railways (1969–1970) and Minister of state for Food and Agriculture. He was also the political mentor of K. Karunakaran. In 2006, the birth centenary celebrations of Panampilly Govinda Menon were inaugurated by the then President of India, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. [1] [2] [3]
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Emulate leaders of the past, President tells politicians". The Hindu. 2006-12-21. http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/21/stories/2006122114750300.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
- ^ "President’s Address at the Inauguration of the Birth Centenary Celebrations of Panampilly Govinda Menon". Press Information Bureau: Government of India. 2006-12-20. http://pib.nic.in/release/rel_print_page1.asp?relid=23536. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
- ^ "Panampilly’s services recalled". The Hindu. 2009-03-03. http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/03/stories/2009030352220300.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-08.
[edit] Further reading
- History of Kerala Legislature at The Official Web Site of Government of Kerala
- Panampilly Memorial Government College, Chalakudy
- L. V. Harikumar: Panampilly Govinda Menon: Charithravazhiyile Deepashikha - Biography, 2nd Edition published by Kerala State Institute of Languages, Thiruvananthapuram, ISBN- 978-81-7638-832-0
- 1906 births
- 1970 deaths
- People from Thrissur
- Indian lawyers
- Malayali politicians
- Indian independence activists
- Indian National Congress politicians from Kerala
- Members of Constituent Assembly of India
- Chief Ministers of Kerala
- Law Ministers of India
- Railway Ministers of India
- St. Thomas College, Thrissur alumni
