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Sanyukta Maharashtra Samiti , roughly translated as
United Maharashtra Committee, was an organisation that spearheaded the demand in the 1950s for the creation of a separate Marathi-speaking state out of the (then bilingual) State of Bombay in western
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, with the city of Bombay (now known as
MumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
) as its capital.
The organisation was founded on February 6, 1956, under the leadership of
Keshavrao JedheKeshavrao Marutrao Jedhe was a leading Freedom Fighter and Congress Leader from Pune at the time of Indian Independence and Chairman of Samyukta Maharashtra Movement in 1956...
in
PunePune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
. Prominent activists of Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti were Patramaharshi Dainik Prabhatkar Walchand Kothari, Acharya Atre,
Prabodhankar ThackerayKeshav Sitaram alias Prabodhankar Thackeray, commonly known as Prabodhankar Thackeray, was one of the Key leaders of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti which successfully campained for a linguistic state of Maharashtra...
,
Senapati BapatPandurang Mahadev Bapat , popularly known as Senapati Bapat, was a major figure in the Indian independence movement....
and Shahir AmarShaikh among others. Acharya Atre criticised
Jawaharlal NehruJawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...
,
Morarji DesaiMorarji Ranchhodji Desai was an Indian independence activist and the fourth Prime Minister of India from 1977–79. He was the first Indian Prime Minister who did not belong to the Indian National Congress...
(then chief minister of Mumbai) and S.K. Patil (a prominent MP from Mumbai city) through his firebrand editorials in
MarathaThe Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
.
The Indian National Congress had pledged to introduce linguistic states prior to Independence. However after Independence, Nehru and
Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelVallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel was an Indian barrister and statesman, one of the leaders of the Indian National Congress and one of the founding fathers of India...
were adamantly opposed to linguistic states. They perceived linguistic states as a threat to the integrity of India. For the first time and perhaps the only time,
RSSRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or National Patriotic Organization), also known the Sangh, is a right-wing Hindu nationalist, paramilitary, volunteer, and allegedly militant organization for Hindu males in India...
and its chief
Madhav Sadashiv GolwalkarMadhav Sadashiv Golwalkar , popularly known as Pujyaniya Guruji , was the second "Sarsanghchalak" of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh a social and cultural organization of India.-Early years:...
supported Nehru and Patel against redrawing of the map along linguistic lines. The catalyst to the creation of a States Re-organization Commission was the fasting death of Telugu nationalist Potti Sriramulu. In 1956, the SRC (States Re-organisation Committee) recommended creation of linguistic states of
Andhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
,
Keralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
and
KarnatakaKarnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
but recommended a bi-lingual state for Maharashtra-Gujarat,with Mumbai as its capital but vidarbha outisde Maharashtra. Further, they recommended the creation of Vidharba state to unite the Marathi-speaking people of former
Hyderabad state-After Indian independence :When India gained independence in 1947 and Pakistan came into existence in 1947, the British left the local rulers of the princely states the choice of whether to join one of the new dominions or to remain independent...
with Marathi speaking areas of
Central Provinces and BerarThe Central Provinces and Berar was a province of British India. The province comprised British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered much of present-day Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states. Its capital was Nagpur. The Central Provinces was formed in...
state. This led to the creation of the predecessor movement Samyuka Maharashtra Parishad, inaugurated on November 1, 1956, causing a great political stir and, under the leadership of
Keshavrao JedheKeshavrao Marutrao Jedhe was a leading Freedom Fighter and Congress Leader from Pune at the time of Indian Independence and Chairman of Samyukta Maharashtra Movement in 1956...
, a whole party meeting was held in Pune and Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti was founded on February 6, 1956. In the second general election the Samiti defeated the stalwarts of Congress by securing 101 seats out of 133, including 12 from Mumbai. The Congress party could form a government only with the support of
Gujarat,
MarathwadaThe name Marathwada identifies one of the five regions in Maharashtra state of India. The region coincides with the Aurangabad Division.-Historical highlights:...
and Vidharba. Yeshwantrao Chavan replaced Morarji Desai as the Chief Minister of the bi-lingual Bombay State.
S.M. Joshi, Shripad Amrit Dange, N.G. Gore and
Prahlad Keshav AtrePrahlād Keshav Atre , popularly known as Āchārya Atre , was a multi-faceted Indian figure. He was a prominent Marathi writer, a poet, an educationist, a newspaper founder–editor of Maratha , a political leader, a movie producer–director–script writer...
fought relentlessly for Samyukta Maharashtra, even at the cost of sacrificing the lives of several people and finally succeeded in convincing Congress leaders that Maharashtra should form a separate state. The resignation of
C. D. DeshmukhSir Chintāman Dwārakānāth Deshmukh, CIE , better known as C. D. Deshmukh, was the first Indian to be appointed as the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India in 1943 by the British Raj authorities...
, the then Finance Minister of the Nehru Cabinet, had its salutary effect.
In January 1960, demonstrators were fired upon by the police at
Flora FountainFlora Fountain, at the Hutatma Chowk , is an ornamentally and exquisitely sculpted architectural heritage monument located at the southern end of the historic Dadabhai Naoroji Road, called the Mile Long Road, at the Fort business district in the heart of South Mumbai, Mumbai, India...
in the capital city of
MumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
. Flora Fountain was subsequently renamed
Hutatma ChowkHutatma Chowk is the official name of a square in South Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.The square hosts Flora Fountain and was known by that name until 1960. It was officially renamed in 1960 in memory of the members of Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, who lost their lives when police fired upon their...
or "Martyr's Crossroads" in their memory. It is estimated that in all, 105 people were shot by security forces during the period of agitation and at different places. Morarji Desai, who was the then chief minister of Bombay state was later removed and replaced by YB Chawan as a result of criticism related to this incident.
The Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti achieved its goal on May 1, 1960 when the State of Bombay was partitioned into the Marathi-speaking
State of MaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
and the Gujarati-speaking
State of Gujarat. However
GoaGoa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
(then a Portuguese colony),
BelgaumBelgaum is a city and a municipal corporation in Belgaum district in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the fourth largest city of the state of Karnataka, the first three being Bangalore, Mysore, Hubli-Dharwad....
,
KarwarKarwar is the administrative headquarters of Uttara Kannada district in Karnataka, India. It is a seaside town situated on the banks of the Kali river which is on the west coast of the Indian peninsula. The town lies about 15 kilometres south of the Karnataka–Goa border and 519 km north-west...
and adjoining areas, which were also part of the Maharashtra envisaged by the Samiti, were not included in Maharashtra state.
See also
- States Reorganisation Act
The States Reorganisation Act of 1956 was a major reform of the boundaries and governance of India's states and territories. The act reorganised the boundaries of India's states along linguistic lines, and amended the Indian Constitution to replace the three types of states, known as Parts A, B,...
- Bombay State
The Bombay State was a state of India, dissolved with the formation of Maharashtra and Gujarat states on May 1, 1960.-History:During British rule, portions of the western coast of India under direct British rule were part of the Bombay Presidency...
- Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
- Gujarat
- Goa Opinion Poll
The Goa Opinion Poll was a referendum held in the state of Goa, India, on 16 January 1967, to decide the future of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu within the Indian Union. Although popularly called an opinion poll, it was in fact, a referendum, as the results of the poll were binding on...
- Chronology of statehood of Maharashtra
1906: Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak conceptualizes the state of Maharashtra1919: Congress Democratic Party includes demand of state of Maharashtra in its manifesto...