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{{short description|Indian Communist politician}} | {{short description|Indian Communist politician}} | ||
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2016}} | {{Use Indian English|date=May 2016}} | ||
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}} | {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}} | ||
{{Infobox officeholder | {{Infobox officeholder | ||
| name = P. Krishna Pillai | | name = P. Krishna Pillai | ||
| image =Krishna Pillai | | image = P. Krishna Pillai.jpg | ||
| imagesize = | | imagesize = | ||
|office1 | | honorific_prefix = [[Comrade]] | ||
|term_start1 | | office1 = 1st Secretary of the [[Communist Party of India]], Kerala State Council | ||
|term_end1 | | term_start1 = 1942 | ||
|predecessor1 | | term_end1 = 1948 | ||
|successor1 | | predecessor1 = ''Position established'' | ||
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1906|08|19}} | | successor1 = [[C. Achutha Menon]] | ||
| birth_place =[[Vaikom]], [[Kottayam]], [[Travancore]] | | office2 = Secretary of the [[Congress Socialist Party]], [[Kerala]] | ||
| residence = [[Vaikom]] | | term_start2 = 1934 | ||
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1948|08|19|1906|08|19}} | | term_end2 = 1939 | ||
| death_place = [[Muhamma]], [[Alleppey]], Travancore | | predecessor2 = ''Position established'' | ||
| constituency = | | successor2 = ''Position abolished'' | ||
| office = | | birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1906|08|19}} | ||
| salary = | | birth_place = [[Vaikom]], [[Kottayam]], [[Travancore]] | ||
| term = | | residence = [[Vaikom]] | ||
| predecessor = | | death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1948|08|19|1906|08|19}} | ||
| successor = | | death_place = [[Muhamma]], [[Alleppey]], Travancore | ||
| party = [[Communist Party of India]] | | constituency = | ||
| occupation = | | office = | ||
| parents = {{ | | salary = | ||
| spouse = | | term = | ||
| children = | | predecessor = | ||
| successor = | |||
| footnotes = Founder of the [[Communist Party of India|Communist]] movement in Kerala | | party = [[Communist Party of India]] | ||
| date = | | occupation = | ||
| year = | | parents = {{Ubl|Narayanan Nair|Parvathy Amma}} | ||
| source = | | spouse = | ||
|caption= | | children = | ||
| footnotes = Founder of the [[Communist Party of India|Communist]] movement in Kerala | |||
| date = | |||
| year = | |||
| source = | |||
| caption = | |||
}} | |||
P. Krishna Pillai was | '''P. Krishna Pillai''' (19 August 1906 at [[Vaikom]], [[Kottayam District|Kottayam]] – 19 August 1948 at [[Muhamma]], [[Alappuzha District|Alleppey]]) was a former [[Indian National Congress]] leader and [[Communism|communist]] revolutionary from [[Kerala]], India. He was one of the founding leaders of the [[Communist Party of India]] in Kerala, and a poet.<ref name='frontline_1'/><ref>{{Cite web |title=വിപ്ലവ സ്മരണകളിൽ പി.കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള; സഖാവ് തന്നെ പേരായ കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റ് ഇതിഹാസം |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/news/latest-news/2021/08/19/remembering-p-krishna-pillai-on-his-115th-birth-anniversary.html |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=വിപ്ലവ സ്മരണകളിൽ പി.കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള; സഖാവ് തന്നെ പേരായ കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റ് ഇതിഹാസം |language=ml}}</ref> | ||
==Early life== | |||
[[File:Krishna Pillai Memorial at Chellikandathil House Hideout of.JPG|left|thumb|Krishna Pillai Memorial at Chellikandathil House]] | |||
P. Krishna Pillai was born in a middle-class family of [[Vaikom]]. He lost both his parents at an early age and consequently had to drop out of school at the fifth grade. Leaving his home in 1920, he travelled extensively in the north of the Indian subcontinent.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-08-19 |title=എന്റെ ശരീരമാകെ തളരുകയാണ്, എന്തു സംഭവിക്കുമെന്ന് എനിക്കറിയാം, സഖാക്കളേ മുന്നോട്ട് |url=https://www.mathrubhumi.com/literature/features/p-krishna-pillai-death-anniversary-6be73e49 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=@mathrubhumi |language=en}}</ref> | |||
When he returned home two years later, he found Kerala seething with social unrest. Subsequently, he took part in a number of popular movements. He was an active volunteer of [[Vaikom Satyagraha]] (1924) and [[Salt Satyagraha]] march from [[Kozhikode]] to [[Payyanur]] (1930).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-08-18 |title=സഖാവ്: പി. കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള ഓർമയായിട്ട് ഇന്ന് 75 വർഷം |url=https://newspaper.mathrubhumi.com/features/edit-page/p-krishnapillai-75th-death-anniversary-1.8832067 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Newspaper |language=en}}</ref> | |||
==Political life== | |||
Krishna Pillai who began his political life as a [[Gandhian]] and a member of the [[Indian National Congress]] in his early youth had gradually transformed into a socialist with communist leanings. And when in 1934 Congress Socialist workers formed the [[Congress Socialist Party]] in [[Bombay]], Krishna Pillai was appointed its secretary in Kerala, all the while functioning under the banner of the Indian National Congress.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ഓർമകളേ മുന്നോട്ട് |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/news/editorial/2023/08/19/memoir-of-p-krishna-pillai-one-of-the-founding-leaders-of-the-communist-party-of-india-in-kerala.html |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=ഓർമകളേ മുന്നോട്ട് |language=ml}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sreekumar |first=Anand |date=2025-06-01 |title=Communist literary internationalism and worldmaking in the twentieth century: Kerala and the Soviet Union |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305748825000416 |journal=Journal of Historical Geography |volume=88 |pages=108–117 |doi=10.1016/j.jhg.2025.05.002 |issn=0305-7488|doi-access=free }}</ref> | |||
By 1936, Krishna Pillai who until then had concentrated his political activities to the [[Malabar district|Malabar]] region now campaigned in the [[Kingdom of Cochin|Cochin]] and [[Travancore]]. In 1938, he organized the famous worker's strike in [[Alappuzha]] (Alleppey), which turned out to be a great success and one of the inspiring factors behind the [[Punnapra-Vayalar Struggle]] of 1946 and the eventual downfall of the rule of [[C. P. Ramaswami Iyer]] in Travancore.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-08-19 |title=അക്രമികളെ അക്രമംകൊണ്ട് നേരിട്ട, കടുത്ത ചീത്തവിളിയോട് അതേ സ്വരത്തില് പ്രതികരിച്ച കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള |url=https://www.mathrubhumi.com/books/excerpts/p-krishna-pillai-communist-party-ems-mathrubhumi-books-8fb7a861 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=@mathrubhumi |language=en}}</ref> | |||
The successful transformation of the Malabar unit of the Congress Socialist Party into the Kerala unit of the [[Communist Party of India]] (CPI) was mainly due to the untiring work of Krishna Pillai. <ref>{{Cite web |title=ഉടുപ്പിൽ അവർ ഉറപ്പിച്ചു; കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റായി |url=https://www.deshabhimani.com/articles-periodicals/rekhamoolam-1-p-krishnapillai-44027 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Deshabhimani |language=en}}</ref>The formal formation of the CPI unit in Kerala was on 26 January 1940. Years later in 1948 when the CPI accepted the [[Calcutta Thesis]] which included in it the express need for an armed struggle against the Indian state, CPI faced a nationwide ban and most of its leaders including Krishna Pillai were forced into hiding.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-01-28 |title='ഈ വരമ്പിലൂടെ കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള നടന്നുപോയിരുന്നു'; ഈ മനുഷ്യന് നടന്നെത്താത്ത ഏതു പ്രദേശമുണ്ട് കേരളത്തില്? |url=https://www.mathrubhumi.com/books/excerpts/pkrishna-pillai-communist-leader-book-excerpt-mathrubhumi-books-18ce875b |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=@mathrubhumi |language=en}}</ref> | |||
P. Krishna Pillai's | ==Death== | ||
[[File:P. Krishnapillai Memorial Speech by Pinarayi Vijayan.JPG|left|thumb|P. Krishna Pillai Memorial Speech by [[Pinarayi Vijayan]] on 2013 at Chellikandathil House, [[Alappuzha]] ]] | |||
While hiding in a worker's hut in [[Muhamma]], Krishna Pillai sustained a snakebite and succumbed to it, aged just 42.<ref>{{Cite web |title=പി കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള കണ്ടെത്തിയ പോരാളി |url=https://www.deshabhimani.com/special/v-s-achuthanandan-10478/p-krishnapillai-with-v-s-achuthanandan-39539 |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=Deshabhimani |language=en}}</ref> | |||
== In popular culture == | == In popular culture == | ||
[[Samuthirakani]] portrays Pillai in the 2014 film ''[[Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/vasanthathinte-kanal-vazhikalil-film-on-p-krishna-pillai/article6590825.ece|title=Ode to a brave patriot|first=Saraswathy|last=Nagarajan|date=November | [[Samuthirakani]] portrays Pillai in the 2014 film ''[[Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/vasanthathinte-kanal-vazhikalil-film-on-p-krishna-pillai/article6590825.ece|title=Ode to a brave patriot|first=Saraswathy|last=Nagarajan|date=13 November 2014|work=The Hindu}}</ref> | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
{{Reflist|refs= | {{Reflist|refs= | ||
<ref name='frontline_1'> | <ref name='frontline_1'>{{cite web | url=http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2117/stories/20040827003109700.htm | title=A man and a movement | publisher=Frontline.in | volume=21 | issue=17 | date=14-27 August 2004}}</ref> | ||
}} | }} | ||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{commons category|P. Krishana Pillai|P. Krishna Pillai}} | {{commons category|P. Krishana Pillai|P. Krishna Pillai}} | ||
*Prakash Karat: [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0827/08272006_krishnapillai%20centenary.htm Kerala's 'First Communist'] | *Prakash Karat: [http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0827/08272006_krishnapillai%20centenary.htm Kerala's 'First Communist'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205224359/http://pd.cpim.org/2006/0827/08272006_krishnapillai%20centenary.htm |date=5 February 2012 }} | ||
*R. Krishnakumar: [http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2117/stories/20040827003109700.htm A man and a movement] | *R. Krishnakumar: [http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2117/stories/20040827003109700.htm A man and a movement] | ||
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[[Category:Indian atheists]] | [[Category:Indian atheists]] | ||
[[Category:People from Vaikom]] | [[Category:People from Vaikom]] | ||
[[Category:Politicians from Kottayam district]] | |||
[[Category:20th-century Indian politicians]] | [[Category:20th-century Indian politicians]] | ||
[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of British India]] | |||
Latest revision as of 07:52, 15 December 2025
P. Krishna Pillai | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 1st Secretary of the Communist Party of India, Kerala State Council | |
| In office 1942–1948 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | C. Achutha Menon |
| Secretary of the Congress Socialist Party, Kerala | |
| In office 1934–1939 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 19 August 1906 Vaikom, Kottayam, Travancore |
| Died | 19 August 1948 (aged 42) Muhamma, Alleppey, Travancore |
| Political party | Communist Party of India |
| Parent(s) |
|
| Residence | Vaikom |
| Founder of the Communist movement in Kerala | |
P. Krishna Pillai (19 August 1906 at Vaikom, Kottayam – 19 August 1948 at Muhamma, Alleppey) was a former Indian National Congress leader and communist revolutionary from Kerala, India. He was one of the founding leaders of the Communist Party of India in Kerala, and a poet.[1][2]
Early life[edit | edit source]
P. Krishna Pillai was born in a middle-class family of Vaikom. He lost both his parents at an early age and consequently had to drop out of school at the fifth grade. Leaving his home in 1920, he travelled extensively in the north of the Indian subcontinent.[3]
When he returned home two years later, he found Kerala seething with social unrest. Subsequently, he took part in a number of popular movements. He was an active volunteer of Vaikom Satyagraha (1924) and Salt Satyagraha march from Kozhikode to Payyanur (1930).[4]
Political life[edit | edit source]
Krishna Pillai who began his political life as a Gandhian and a member of the Indian National Congress in his early youth had gradually transformed into a socialist with communist leanings. And when in 1934 Congress Socialist workers formed the Congress Socialist Party in Bombay, Krishna Pillai was appointed its secretary in Kerala, all the while functioning under the banner of the Indian National Congress.[5][6]
By 1936, Krishna Pillai who until then had concentrated his political activities to the Malabar region now campaigned in the Cochin and Travancore. In 1938, he organized the famous worker's strike in Alappuzha (Alleppey), which turned out to be a great success and one of the inspiring factors behind the Punnapra-Vayalar Struggle of 1946 and the eventual downfall of the rule of C. P. Ramaswami Iyer in Travancore.[7]
The successful transformation of the Malabar unit of the Congress Socialist Party into the Kerala unit of the Communist Party of India (CPI) was mainly due to the untiring work of Krishna Pillai. [8]The formal formation of the CPI unit in Kerala was on 26 January 1940. Years later in 1948 when the CPI accepted the Calcutta Thesis which included in it the express need for an armed struggle against the Indian state, CPI faced a nationwide ban and most of its leaders including Krishna Pillai were forced into hiding.[9]
Death[edit | edit source]
While hiding in a worker's hut in Muhamma, Krishna Pillai sustained a snakebite and succumbed to it, aged just 42.[10]
In popular culture[edit | edit source]
Samuthirakani portrays Pillai in the 2014 film Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil.[11]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ "A man and a movement". Frontline.in. 14–27 August 2004.
- ↑ "വിപ്ലവ സ്മരണകളിൽ പി.കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള; സഖാവ് തന്നെ പേരായ കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റ് ഇതിഹാസം". വിപ്ലവ സ്മരണകളിൽ പി.കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള; സഖാവ് തന്നെ പേരായ കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റ് ഇതിഹാസം (in മലയാളം). Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "എന്റെ ശരീരമാകെ തളരുകയാണ്, എന്തു സംഭവിക്കുമെന്ന് എനിക്കറിയാം, സഖാക്കളേ മുന്നോട്ട്". @mathrubhumi. 19 August 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "സഖാവ്: പി. കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള ഓർമയായിട്ട് ഇന്ന് 75 വർഷം". Newspaper. 18 August 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "ഓർമകളേ മുന്നോട്ട്". ഓർമകളേ മുന്നോട്ട് (in മലയാളം). Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ Sreekumar, Anand (1 June 2025). "Communist literary internationalism and worldmaking in the twentieth century: Kerala and the Soviet Union". Journal of Historical Geography. 88: 108–117. doi:10.1016/j.jhg.2025.05.002. ISSN 0305-7488.
- ↑ "അക്രമികളെ അക്രമംകൊണ്ട് നേരിട്ട, കടുത്ത ചീത്തവിളിയോട് അതേ സ്വരത്തില് പ്രതികരിച്ച കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള". @mathrubhumi. 19 August 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "ഉടുപ്പിൽ അവർ ഉറപ്പിച്ചു; കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള കമ്യൂണിസ്റ്റായി". Deshabhimani. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "'ഈ വരമ്പിലൂടെ കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള നടന്നുപോയിരുന്നു'; ഈ മനുഷ്യന് നടന്നെത്താത്ത ഏതു പ്രദേശമുണ്ട് കേരളത്തില്?". @mathrubhumi. 28 January 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ "പി കൃഷ്ണപിള്ള കണ്ടെത്തിയ പോരാളി". Deshabhimani. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
- ↑ Nagarajan, Saraswathy (13 November 2014). "Ode to a brave patriot". The Hindu.
External links[edit | edit source]
- Prakash Karat: Kerala's 'First Communist' Archived 5 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- R. Krishnakumar: A man and a movement