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The Indian People's Front (IPF) was a mass front organisation founded in Delhi between 24–26 April 1982. It was conceptualised by
Vinod Mishra Vinod Mishra (24 March 1947 – 18 December 1998) was an Indian communist politician. Mishra served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation between 1975 and 1998. Early life and student activism Mi ...
and it was operated as the open mass front of the CPIML Liberation between 1982–1994. The front primarily worked for the social and economic upliftment of
Adivasi The Adivasi (also transliterated as Adibasi) are heterogeneous tribal groups across the Indian subcontinent. The term is a recent invention from the 20th century and is now widely used as a self-designation by groups classified as Scheduled Tr ...
s,
Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
s and
impoverished Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse
sections of society and mobilised them through the means of unions, rallies and
conventions Convention may refer to: * Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct ** Treaty, an agreement in international law ** Convention (political norm), uncodified legal or political tradition * Convention (meeting) ...
. It had a significant presence in the state of
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
(including present day
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
) and also operated in the states of
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...
,
Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...
,
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
and
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
attempting to project itself as a national party. It was disbanded when the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation began contesting elections on its own, inheriting its organisation. The leadership of the front included Nagbhushan Patnaik and
Dipankar Bhattacharya Dipankar Bhattacharya (born December 1960) is an Indian politician and the national general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation. He was the top ranker of the 1979 higher secondary board examination and has ...
. The chairperson of the
Autonomous State Demand Committee Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), originally Peoples Democratic Front, was set up as a mass organization of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation with the aim of statehood for the Karbi Anglong region in the India ...
,
Jayanta Rongpi Jayanta Rongpi is an Indian politician. He served as Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha for the Autonomous District constituency of Assam from 1991 to 2004. In 1991, 1996 and 1998 he was elected as a candidate of the Autonomous State Demand Com ...
was also a member of the central committee. The central committee also included
Rameshwar Prasad Rameshwar Prasad () is an Indian politician, belonging to the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation. He is a Central Committee member of CPI (ML) Liberation and the president of All India Agricultural Labourers Association ...
and Ganauri Azad Harijan, among others.


History


Foundation

In 1979, the
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (CPI(ML)L) is a communist political party in India. The party is represented in Bihar and Jharkhand Legislative Assemblies. Since 2023, the party is also a member of the INDIA bloc ...
held a conference which sanctioned the formation of an open mass organisation. The idea was conceptualized by the general secretary
Vinod Mishra Vinod Mishra (24 March 1947 – 18 December 1998) was an Indian communist politician. Mishra served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation between 1975 and 1998. Early life and student activism Mi ...
to enable the party to organise with other democratic forces on the lines of a "popular, democratic and patriotic programme" and participate in
electoral politics An electoral or voting system is a set of rules used to determine the results of an election. Electoral systems are used in politics to elect governments, while non-political elections may take place in business, nonprofit organizations and inf ...
. The party had been underground since the imposition of the Emergency in India.Sen, Arindam.
The Life of Vinod Mishra
''
The Indian People's Front was launched in a conference organised by the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation which was held in Delhi between 24–26 April 1982. The conference was attended by the splinter factions of the
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) (CPI(ML)) was an Indian communist party formed by the All India Coordination Committee of Communist Revolutionaries (AICCCR) at a congress in Calcutta in 1969. The foundation of the party wa ...
led by Nagbhushan Patnaik and
Chandra Pulla Reddy Chandra Pulla Reddy (1917 – 9 November 1984, Calcutta) was an Indian communist leader. Biography Chandra Pulla Reddy was born in 1917 at Velugodu village in what is currently the Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. A leading activist in ...
. It was intended to project itself as a "national alternative" to the
Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...
led
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
. Karat, Prakash.
Naxalism Today; At an Ideological Deadend
''. ''The Marxist'', Volume: 3, No. 1, January- March 1985
In the beginning, the front was projected as a
united front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political and/ ...
of different revolutionary groups but most other factions dropped out during its formation and it effectively became a mass organisation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation. Satyanarayan Singh publicly denounced and ridiculed the notion of the front becoming a "national alternative". On 15 October 1982, the front organised a mass rally against the Bihar Press Bill which witnessed a participation of 100,000 people according to
mainstream media In journalism, mainstream media (MSM) is a term and abbreviation used to refer collectively to the various large Mass media, mass news media that influence many people and both reflect and shape prevailing currents of thought.Noam Chomsky, Choms ...
sources.


Second conference

The Indian People's Front (IPF) held its second conference in
Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
between 4–6 November 1984, in midst of the turmoil following the
assassination of Indira Gandhi Prime Minister of India, Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated at 9:30 AM on 31 October 1984 at her 7 RCR, residence in Safdarjung Road, New Delhi. She was killed by her bodyguards, Satwant Singh and Beant Singh (assassin), Be ...
.
Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation The Communist Party of India (CPI) is a political party in India. The CPI considers the December 26, 1925 Cawnpore (Kanpur) conference as its foundation date. Between 1946 and 1951, the CPI led militant struggles such as the peasant revo ...
.
30 years of CPI(ML)
''
It contested 49 seats in the
1985 Bihar Legislative Assembly election Bihar Legislative Assembly election, 1985 was held in March 1985 to elect members to the Bihar Legislative Assembly. The Indian National Congress won a majority of seats and the popular vote and Bindeshwari Dubey became the new Chief Minister ...
but failed to win a single seat. On 19 April 1986, the police opened fire on a protest gathering of landless farmers (primarily
dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
s) which resulted in the deaths of 23 people in
Arwal Arwal town is the administrative headquarters of Arwal district in Bihar state of India. It was earlier part of Jehanabad district. The district as formed to control the naxalism in the area. District was formed from the area of two near ...
,
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
. Civil rights activists described the massacre as part of a systematic eradication of the moblisation of impoverished people by branding them as "Naxalite" and killing them in police encounters in collaboration with private armies and militias of rich ''
zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...
s'' (landlords) such as the
Ranvir Sena The Ranvir Sena is a militia functioning as a landlord group, mainly based in the state of Bihar, India. The group was formed by Bhumihar landlords under the leadership of Brahmeshwar Singh, Brahmeshwar Mukhiya in 1994, with the aim to counter ...
. In August, the IPF organised an armed ''
gherao Gherao, meaning "encirclement", is a word which denotes a tactic used by labour activists and union leaders in India; it is similar to picketing. Usually, a group of people would surround a politician or a government building until their demands a ...
'' (picketing) of the
Bihar Legislative Assembly The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the bicameral Bihar Legislature of the state of Bihar in India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is ...
in protest of the massacre. The protest is claimed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation, to mark a new phase in the assertiveness of revolutionary democratic forces. In the same year, the front organised a "national convention of women" in
Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
which saw a participation of around 1000 women. The convention took the initiative of giving attention to women's issues while attempting to foster cooperation and synthesis between communist women's organisations and autonomous women's groups. In an address to the convention, the president of the women's cell of the front stated that feminism and Marxism were complementary ideologies. The front also organised an "all India worker's convention" in
Ambernath Ambernath (Marathi pronunciation: �mbəɾnaːt̪ʰ is an eastern suburban city in Thane district of Maharashtra and is a part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Demographics In 2011, Ambarnath had a population of 253,475, with 132,582 M ...
, near
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
in November 1987, with
trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
leader
Datta Samant Dattatray Samant (21 November 1932 – 16 January 1997), also known as Datta Samant, and popularly referred to as ''Doctorsaheb'', was an Indian politician and trade union leader, who is noted for leading 200–300 thousand textile mill worker ...
as the convener.


Mandal commission & Economic liberalisation

In the
1989 Indian general election General elections were held in India on 22 and 26 November 1989 to elect the members of the ninth Lok Sabha. The incumbent Indian National Congress (Indira) government under the premiership of Rajiv Gandhi lost its mandate, even though it was ...
, the Indian People's Front (IPF) was able to win the Arrah constituency in Bihar with
Rameshwar Prasad Rameshwar Prasad () is an Indian politician, belonging to the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation. He is a Central Committee member of CPI (ML) Liberation and the president of All India Agricultural Labourers Association ...
as the candidate. It was also able to win 7 seats and secure the second highest vote share in 14 constituencies in the
1990 Bihar Legislative Assembly election The 10th Bihar Legislative Assembly elections were held in February 1990, to elect representatives for the Bihar Legislative Assembly. It resulted in a decisive victory for the Janta Dal, riding on the pan-India victory of 1989, during V. P. Sing ...
. Over the years, the front had acquired a large share of the Scheduled Caste voters from the
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
in Bihar. It took the position of supporting reservations solely on the basis of social and educational backwardness and supported the implementation of the recommendations of the
Mandal Commission The Mandal Commission or the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBC), was established in India in 1979 by the Janata Party government under Prime Minister Morarji Desai with a mandate to "identify the socially or educatio ...
. In the 1990 election, the IPF had contested 82 seats and received a vote share of 10.56% on the contested seats. During the
economic liberalisation in India The economic liberalisation in India refers to the series of policy changes aimed at opening up the country's economy to the world, with the objective of making it more market-oriented and consumption-driven. The goal was to expand the role ...
, it launched campaigns against price hikes and for the
right to work The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or to engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work, enshrined in the United Nations 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Ri ...
, adopting a traditional leftist discourse. On 8 October 1990, a national rally with the slogan of ''dam bandho kaam do'' (check prices and give jobs) was organised in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
by the front. In the same month, it organised a mass rally in
Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
which was noted to be the largest rally in the recorded history of the city. In the
1991 Indian general election General elections were held in India on 20 May, 12 June and 15 June 1991 to elect the members of the 10th Lok Sabha, although they were delayed until 19 February 1992 in Punjab. No party could muster a majority in the Lok Sabha, resulting i ...
, the IPF lost the seat of Arrah constituency but was able to send a member to the parliament (
Jayanta Rongpi Jayanta Rongpi is an Indian politician. He served as Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha for the Autonomous District constituency of Assam from 1991 to 2004. In 1991, 1996 and 1998 he was elected as a candidate of the Autonomous State Demand Com ...
) through the
Autonomous State Demand Committee Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), originally Peoples Democratic Front, was set up as a mass organization of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation with the aim of statehood for the Karbi Anglong region in the India ...
in the Karbi Anglong constituency. In the same year, four of its members in the Bihar Legislative Assembly defected to the
Janata Dal Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...
under the leadership of
Lalu Prasad Yadav Lalu Prasad (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997 with a brief interruption in 1995 and as the union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founder and president o ...
at the height of polarisation on the Mandal issue. In Uttar Pradesh, the party publication ''Liberation'' accused the
Samajwadi Party The Samajwadi Party ( SP; ) is a Socialism, socialist political party in India. It was founded on 4 October 1992 by former Janata Dal politician Mulayam Singh Yadav and is headquartered in New Delhi. It is the third-largest political party in ...
of targeting the cadre and lower caste support base of the Indian People's Front with
state violence State violence is the use of force, intimidation, or oppression by a government against its citizens. State violence can happen through law enforcement or military force, as well as through other branches of government and bureaucracy. State violen ...
and then providing them with protection if they defected preventing it from successfully organising the way it had in
Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
. On 14 February 1992, in the wake of rising
Hindu nationalism Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expression of political thought, based on the native social and cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent. "Hindu nationalism" is a simplistic translation of . It is better descri ...
in India, the
Bharatiya Kisan Sangh The Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) () is an Indian farmers' organization that is politically linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. BKS was founded by Dattopant Thengadi in 1978. As of 2000, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh claimed BKS had a quart ...
(farmer's union affiliated to the
Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...
) killed 14 Scheduled caste landless labourers for supporting the Indian People's Front in Tikshora village near Patna. At the same time, the front was able to expand its footprint in
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
when its candidate Surjan Singh Joga won the Joga constituency in the
1992 Punjab Legislative Assembly election Legislative Assembly elections were held in the Indian state of Punjab in 1992 to elect the members of the Punjab Legislative Assembly. Chief Minister Beant Singh was elected as the leader of the ruling party. Voter turnout Urban-Rura ...
.


Disbandment

In December 1992, the
Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation The Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation (CPI(ML)L) is a communist political party in India. The party is represented in Bihar and Jharkhand Legislative Assemblies. Since 2023, the party is also a member of the INDIA bloc ...
held its fifth congress in
Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
. Following which the party came out of the underground and eventually disbanded the Indian People's Front in 1994. The ''Samajik Parivartan Rally'' (Social Change Rally) on 18 March 1994, was the last rally called by the front. The rally was reported to been a gathering of tens of thousands of bare-footed and starving workers who had marched to
Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
from all over Bihar; some having traveled over on foot to reach the venue. At the time, political observers described the front to be the fastest growing leftist movement in India. From 1995 onward the party began contesting elections on its own, substituting the role of the former front.


Affiliated organisations

The Indian People's Front (IPF) had a number of unorganised sector unions in Bihar. * Rickshaw-Thela Chalak Mazdoor Sangha (RTCMS): a union of rickshaw and handcart drivers. Ganauri Azad Harijan was the president of the union and a member of the national executive of the Indian People's Front. * Bihar Jhuggi-Jhopri Bashi Sangha (BJJBS): an organisation of slum dwellers in
Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
. Dinesh Singh was a fish seller and the president of the BJJBS. *Uttarakhand Popular Anti-Liquor Movement: The movement for the restriction and regulation of liquor sales in
Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...
was also affiliated to the IPF from the founding conference.


See also

*
BAMCEF Waman Meshram The All India Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation, abbreviated as BAMCEF, is an organisation for employees of oppressed communities that was established in 1971 by Kanshi Ram, D. K. Khaparde, and Dinabhana. ...
*
Bahujan Samaj Party The Bahujan Samaj Party ( BSP) is a political party in India that was formed to represent Bahujans (literally means "community in majority"), referring to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes (OBC), along with Religious ...
*
Lal Sena Lal Sena (लाल सेना; lit. Red Army in Hindi) was an organised armed militia of CPIML Liberation in northeastern India, across the terrains of central Bihar, north-west of today's Jharkhand, and a few districts of eastern Uttar Pra ...
*
All India Students Association All India Students' Association (AISA) is a left wing student organisation in India. It describes itself as "the voice of the radical students' movement" and is affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation. The ass ...


References

{{Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation 1982 establishments in Delhi 1994 disestablishments in India Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation Defunct communist parties in India Defunct political party alliances in India Political parties established in 1982 Political parties disestablished in 1994 Popular fronts