Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

EMS' action

The no-holds-barred electioneering for the Kancheepuram and Gummidipoondi byelections is unfortunate. This reminds one of the stand of the Communist stalwart E.M.S. Namboodiripad during an election in Devikulam in the late 1950s. The constituency was dominated by Tamil plantation workers. The Communist party candidate was Ayesha Begum, a Muslim. The Congress nominated a trade unionist who was a Tamil. Top Congress leaders, including K. Kamaraj, actively canvassed for the party candidate.It was then that EMS declared that neither he nor any of his ministerial colleagues in Kerala would campaign for the party candidate. Despite the Congress attempts to play on Tamil linguistic sentiments, Ayesha Begum won and later became the Deputy Speaker of the Kerala Assembly.

Korattur G. Radhakrishnan,
Chennai

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