A.K. Gopalan
| A. K. Gopalan | |
|---|---|
AKG Statue located at Kannur
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| Former Leader of the Opposition (India) | |
| Constituency | Kasaragod |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan Nambiar 1 October 1904 Kannur, Kerala, British India |
| Died | 22 March 1977 (aged 72) Trivandrum Medical College, Kerala, India |
| Political party | Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
| Spouse(s) | Susheela Gopalan |
Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan (1 October 1904 – 22 March 1977), popularly known as A. K. Gopalan or AKG, was an Indian communist leader. A.K.G was a Communist who showed how the avenues of parliamentary democracy could be utilized for advancing the cause of the people. He served as the leader of the opposition since the first Lok Sabha in 1952.
Ayillyath Kuttiari Gopalan Nambiar was born on 1 October 1904 in Peralasseri, Kannur District of Northern Kerala and educated in Tellichery. By the time he became a teacher, India's independence movement was becoming energised by Mahatma Gandhi. Gopalan took part in the Khilafat Movement which prompted a marked change in his outlook, transforming him into a dedicated full-time social and political worker.
In 1927 he joined the Indian National Congress and began playing an active role in the Khadi Movement and the upliftment of Harijans. He was arrested for participating in the salt satyagraha in 1930.
While in prison he got acquainted with communism and became a member of the Congress Socialist Party and later the Communist Party of India when it finally took shape in Kerala in 1939. He led the hunger march from Malabar region to Madras in 1936 and the Malabar Jatha in support of the movement for responsible government in Travancore.
The outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 prompted an upsurge in activism against British domination, and Gopalan was again arrested. But in 1942 he escaped from prison and remained at large till the end of the war in 1945. He was arrested again shortly after the end of the war and was still behind bars when India became independent on 15 August 1947. He was released a few weeks later. Thereafter he was a member of Lok Sabha for 5 consecutive terms till his death on 22 March 1977 and became the first leader of opposition in the parliament of India.
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