



Assembly elections: Why Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have similar but divergent characteristics
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal are going to the polls this month. These three states are dissimilar in many ways. But they are similar in that they have had unique sociopolitical paths from the time of India’s independence.
These paths are quite distinct from those followed by the other states of India.After independence, the State Reorganization Commission enacted in 1956 set up these new states. Since then, in Tamil Nadu, the Congress Party ruled for the initial 10 years. For the remaining 59 years, non-Congress parties like the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) have ruled.
In West Bengal, the Congress ruled for the initial 20 years and non-Congress governments have been in power for the last 49 years. In Kerala, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) has ruled for 20 years while the CPI (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) has been in power for 49 years. In Kerala alone, there has been a balanced alternation between the UDF and LDF in recent years.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which rules at the Centre, has never been in power in these three states. While there are other states where major national parties have not held power, there is none where this has added up to more than half the years since 1947. The sociopolitical history of Tamil Nadu and its predecessor Madras State is fascinating.
The Dravidian political movement has its roots in the Justice Party formed in 1916. It championed non-Brahmin rights, social justice and affirmative action, laying the groundwork for Dravidian politics. This movement gained momentum when the Justice Party merged with the Dravidar Kazhagam (DK), a social reform organization founded in 1944 by E.V.
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