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{{Short description|Indian politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2021}}
'''Krishnapada Ghosh''' (1914–1987) was an Indian politician and [[trade union]]ist. He served as [[West Bengal]] Minister of Labour 1969–1970 and 1977–1985. He was a [[Central Committee]] member of the [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]].<ref name="Conference1989">{{cite book|author=All India Kisan Sabha. Conference|title=Forward to struggles: proceedings, speeches, resolutions, messages, etc., to 26th Conference at Khammam (Andhra Pradesh).|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ev3sAAAAMAAJ|year=1989|publisher=All India Kisan Sabha|page=41}}</ref> He was also a member of the Working Committee of the [[Centre for Indian Trade Unions]].<ref>''[http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/17194/11/11_chapter%204.pdf CPI(M), LEFT FRONT GOVERNMENT AND JUTE LABOUR : MOBILIZATION FROM ABOVE]''</ref>

==Youth==
Born in 1914, Ghosh grew up in [[Khulna]].<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001">{{cite book|author=Abanī Lāhiṛī|title=Postwar Revolt of the Rural Poor in Bengal: Memoirs of a Communist Activist|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ijhuAAAAMAAJ|date=1 January 2001|publisher=Seagull|isbn=978-81-7046-182-1|page=171}}</ref> In 1930 he moved to [[Calcutta]], where he joined the student movement.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> Around 1935/1936 he became a member of the [[Bengal Labour Party]] and active in workers activism.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> After about a year, he became a card-carrying member of the [[Communist Party of India]] (along with other Labour Party members).<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> When the Labour Party broke with CPI, he renounced his CPI party membership.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/>

==Return to the Communist Party==
In 1945 he again joined CPI.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> He became a key labour organizer amongst the [[Kidderpore]] dock workers and at Saxby and Farmers.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> Ghosh was jailed in 1948, and remained in prison until 1952.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/> After being freed from jail, Ghosh took up a job at the CPI daily ''[[Swadhinata]]''.<ref name="Lāhiṛī2001"/>

Ghosh sided with CPI(M) in the party split. Ghosh won the [[Beliaghata North (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Beliaghata North constituency seat]] in the [[1967 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]].<ref name=vidhansabha1967>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1967/Statistical%20report%20WB1967.pdf |title = General Elections, India, 1967, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] | accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref> He obtained 21,387 votes (42.63%).<ref name=vidhansabha1967/> He retained the Beliaghata North seat in the [[1969 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]], obtaining 31,294 votes (66.10%).<ref name=vidhansabha1969>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1969/StatReport_WB_69.pdf|title = General Elections, India, 1969, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] |accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref>

==United Front ministry==
Ghosh was named Minister for Labour in the second [[United Front (1967)|United Front]] government of West Bengal, formed in 1969.<ref name="Committee">{{cite book|author=Communist Party of India (Marxist). West Bengal State Committee|title=Election results of West Bengal: statistics & analysis, 1952–1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CNeNAAAAMAAJ|publisher=The Committee|page=379}}</ref> As Labour Minister, Ghosh sought to support labour in its confrontation with corporate interests.<ref>{{cite book|title=Forward to Unity and Struggle: Proceedings and Documents of the All-India Trade Union Conference, Calcutta, May 28–31, 1970|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H0EEAAAAMAAJ|year=1970|publisher=CITU Publication|page=40}}</ref> With the CPI(M) in charge of both the Home and Labour departments, the police were instructed not to intervene against striking workers.<ref name="Ruparelia2015"/> ''[[Gherao]]''s were effectively legalized.<ref name="Ruparelia2015"/> Salaries of workers increased as a result.<ref name="Ruparelia2015">{{cite book|author=Sanjay Ruparelia|title=Divided We Govern: Coalition Politics in Modern India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1WyMCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA59|year=2015|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-026491-8|pages=59–60}}</ref> In the first six months of the second United Front government there were 551 strikes and 73 lock-outs across the state, affecting some 570,000 workers.<ref name="AhmadIshwaran1973">{{cite book|author1=Aziz Ahmad|author2=Karigoudar Ishwaran|title=Contributions to Asian Studies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2yEVAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA49|date=1 December 1973|publisher=Brill Archive|pages=49–50, 56|id=GGKEY:BEAUDTYBNJT}}</ref>

==1971 & 1972 assembly elections==
Ghosh retained the Beliaghata North seat in the [[1971 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]].<ref name=vidhansabha1971>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1971/StatReport_WB_71.pdf |title = General Elections, India, 1971, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] | accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref> He obtained 23,318 votes (53.40%), defeating the [[All India Forward Bloc]] candidate in a straight contest.<ref name=vidhansabha1971/> In the [[1972 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]] he was defeated by Ananta Kumar Bharati of the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref name=vidhansabha1972>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1972/StatReport_WB_72.pdf |title =General Elections, India, 1972, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] | accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref> Ghosh finished in second place with 14,839 votes (21.60%)<ref name=vidhansabha1972/>

==Left Front ministry==
Ghosh won the [[Beliaghata (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Beliaghata constituency seat]] in the [[1977 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]].<ref name=vidhansabha1977/> He obtained 29,201 votes (55.82%), defeating the [[Janata Party]] and INC candidates.<ref name=vidhansabha1977>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1977/StatisticalReportWestBengal77.pdf |title = General Elections, India, 1977, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] | accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref>

Ghosh was again named Labour Minister in the [[Left Front (West Bengal)|Left Front]] government formed in 1977.<ref>{{cite book|title=Asian Recorder|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wwYuAQAAIAAJ|volume=23|year=1977}}</ref> His role in the Left Front government differed from that of the United Front experience, rather than unilaterally supporting labour he now sought to act as mediator between unions and employers.<ref name="Mallick2007">{{cite book|author=Ross Mallick|title=Development Policy of a Communist Government: West Bengal Since 1977|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r7ar3x8KAOsC&pg=PA194|date=26 November 2007|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-04785-2|page=194}}</ref>

He retained the Beliaghata seat in the [[1982 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election]], obtaining 44,277 votes (62.88%).<ref name=vidhansabha1982>{{cite web| url = http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/StatisticalReports/SE_1982/StatisticalReportWestBengal82.pdf |title = General Elections, India, 1982, to the Legislative Assembly of West Bengal | publisher= [[Election Commission of India]] | accessdate = 4 December 2016}}</ref>

Ghosh retired from his post as Labour Minister in 1985, due to old age.<ref>{{cite book|title=India Today|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v1NDAAAAYAAJ|volume=10|year=1985|publisher=Thomson Living Media India Limited|page=85}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Data India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pn9DAAAAYAAJ|year=1985|publisher=Press Institute of India|page=479}}</ref><ref name="Committee382">{{cite book|author=Communist Party of India (Marxist). West Bengal State Committee|title=Election results of West Bengal: statistics & analysis, 1952–1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CNeNAAAAMAAJ|publisher=The Committee|page=382}}</ref> He died in 1987.<ref>{{cite book|title=Trade Union Record|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FnXtAAAAMAAJ|volume=46|year=1988|publisher=All-India Trade Union Congress}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghosh, Krishnapada}}
[[Category:1987 deaths]]
[[Category:Trade unionists from West Bengal]]
[[Category:Communist Party of India (Marxist) politicians from West Bengal]]
[[Category:Members of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly]]
[[Category:State cabinet ministers of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Journalists from West Bengal]]
[[Category:Politicians from Kolkata]]
[[Category:1914 births]]

Krishnapada Ghosh - Revision history

imported>Ebbedlila at 15:12, 13 August 2021