Comrade Eswary Balanandan
- M.M. Lawrence
With the demise of Comrade E. Balanandan on January 19 2009, the working class of India has lost a veteran trade union leader and staunch Marxist. He died at the age of 84 after protracted illness.
This is how Comrade E. Balanandan describes of himself in his autobiographical work – Nadannutheertha Vazhikal – (The Path Trodden):
"If put in linguistic cliché of a document writer, I was born on July 24 1924 as eldest descendent to Unnikkali Eswary of Baruapattil House situated west of Kattakkal Canal in Kannimelcherry of Saktikulangara , Kollam and to Kochuthoppil Kunjiraman Channar."
Of the house and social status of his family at birth, this is how he describes in his book.
"...In short, ours was a large family consisting of several members. The home, where I was born can be said to be large vis a vis those times, consisting of five or six rooms having Kerala style patio and a front-end structure – reconstructed with tiled roof. During those times, there hardly was any tiled house near to my home. By the time I was born, the house and surrounding area of about an acre of land was under mortgage – consequent to adverse financial tide in my uncle’s toddy contract."
Obviously, the family's dwindling financial situation turned him to be a school drop out. From uncle's toddy shop he quietly walked away and eventually in 1941, he moved to Aluva to work in Aluminium Company, where he rose to become a very skilled worker in running, maintaining and troubleshooting electrical installations of the Company. His expertise received prompt recognition from the Canadian manager J.W. Cameroon, who endeared him. however, when his trade union activities eventually spanned to nearby factories at Aluva industrial belt and amongst the workers of Company's contractors executing installation work, the management became quite unease.
Organising trade unions during those times was far more difficult. There was no statutory machinery for settlement of industrial disputes. However, All Travancore Trade Union Congress (ATTUC) led by T.V. Thomas and R. Sugathan was functioning with headquarters at Alleppey. This organisation and its leaders extended all help to the budding trade unionists of Aluva. These leaders also got the Government of Travancore to accept the demand for an informal tripartite dispute resolution forum. In retrospect, it looks as though the higher echelons of bureaucracy were somewhat progressive and less corrupt during those times.
At one stage ATTUC leaders brought the unjust dismissal of Balanandan to the notice of the then Inspector General of Police of Travancore Parthasarathy Iyyangar. Eventually Iyyangar got the Canadian Manger Cameroon to agree for reinstatement of the dismissed employee.
It proved to be too testing for Balanandan to divide his time between factory work and trade union, which was expanding to mass protest demanding responsible government – in other words, to end monarchy in Travancore. The growing acceptance of Balanandan's leadership by workers and general public left him with almost no time for factory work. The final formal dismissal thus ended his career as a factory worker.
Balanandan formally became a communist by joining the Party in 1943 though much earlier than this event, at one stage, the management of the factory mistakenly assumed that he was already a communist and was about to organise an attack. This episode took the manager to heels jumping through the window fearing possible attack!
During those times Aluva region was the underground headquarters of the Communist party in Kerala. Balanandan ensured effective functioning of the illegal machinery of the Party of Aluva region. He played important role in providing safe haven to the Party's leaders such as P. Krishna Pillai, E.M. Sankaran Namboodiripad, K.C. George and N.C. Sekar so that they might be able to do the Party's work without being noticed by enemies and police. He had to spend years in underground and in jail. Torture while in police custody used to be the norm during those times. Balanandan did not get disheartened by such difficult life. On the other hand such adverses emboldened him to face far more severe challenges.
He also became active in AITUC (All-India Trade Union Congress). As part of the trade union work he was always active in political campaigns. When Communist Party of India was voted in 1957 for the first time to rule the State it was a clear victory for the working class. In the context of agitation by disgruntled elements including clergy and other communal forces the task of supporting the Government through political campaigns became all the more important.
Balanandan jokingly used to recall an incidence during those times. After campaign meeting along with some others he was stranded at Aluva at odd hours after private bus timings during night. He was President of AITUC's Ernakulam District Committee at that time. He along with three others were counting coins to see whether they had enough to pay for a fast passenger long distance bus. Then suddenly Saami was addressed demandingly "one anna please". He was aghast. It was the familiar figure – formerly that person was working as driver and later due to force of circumstance he was deranged and became a vegabond wearing torn clothes and adopting ugly demeanour. Initially Balanandan excused at not being able to meet his demand. On second thought Balananadn found the solution to meet the immediate travel cost.
When the person, a known figure was about to leave them, Balanandan called back asking equally demandingly "Narayanan, four annas please". Promptly former driver counted four annas and gave to Balanandan. Such was the informal love and affection that Balanandan maintained with one and all.
In 1964, when the Communist Party split, he joined to form the CPI (M). In course of time he rose to become a member of the Party's Polit Bureau. Likewise, in 1970 when Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) was formed he assumed responsibility for Kerala and became the Secretary of Kerala State Committee of CITU. Later, he rose to become its national leader and President of CITU. Balanandan led several PSU trade unions and for a few terms was also President of the Electricity Employees' Federation of India. Practical experience of having worked with employees having diverse skills turned him to become an expert on areas such as Power, Telecom, Pharmaceuticals and Heavy Industries.
In 1978 Balanandan directly led the strike of electricity employees of Kerala. This strike received national attention in the context of repressive measures adopted by the coalition government in Kerala led by an alliance of Congress Party and CPI. The standard response of the Government towards strike was to unleash violence by police and paramilitary forces against the striking employees. The Government's policy was not to negotiate unless the strike was unconditionally withdrawn. Another tenet was to apply the principle of dies non – i.e., no work; no pay, which the Government declared as nonnegotiable.
Balanandan used to remind workers that they belong to working class. Whatever be the problem workers face in other factories or in any industry, such problem must be taken as common problem of all workers. He took this tenet into practice by involving several trade unions which supported the strike of electricity employees. With CITU and several mass organisations giving sustained support for the strike, the Government finally was forced to condescend and started negotiation while the strike was continuing. The strike which began at midnight on May 4 prolonged for 51 days. It was withdrawn through negotiation and pursuant to honourable settlement. This strike instilled in general new confidence amongst workers to fight for the rights. Another development was CPI's anti labour attitude got severe reprimand at its Bhatinda Congress. Eventually the untenable alliance between the Congress and the CPI got weakened. Final formal break-up of the alliance came soon thereafter.
Balanadan did a lot of underground work to fight emergency regime of 1975-77. Something that everyone remembers to be remarkable in Balanandan is that he took pains to educate the workers to work for social change. At every occasion he drove the point to its logical conclusion viz. that the workers are organised into trade unions not merely to fight for more wage and bonus. He always impressed that workers alone are capable and have the responsibility to bring about social change. Workers primary role is to become the ruling class. When CITU Conference in Chennai concluded, the session ended with passionate call from Balanandan urging the comrades to take up the leadership role to fight for social change. The delegates were so impressed with the clarion call from Balanandan many were found elated to appreciatingly express their feeling.
Though a school dropout, his real education probably began the day he left the school. Besides his proven technical expertise related to engineering, he leaves one to wonder at the amazing felicity with which he handles English language. It was indeed refreshing experience to listen to him speak English at public gatherings as President of CITU. Of course the sounds of English language and its peculiar intonations may not be there. Even Dr. Manmohan Singh while delivering a speech recently in the United States jokingly reassured the audience that he was indeed speaking English. We Indians speaking diverse languages are accustomed to use English in such flexible manner that the substance and not the form of what one say is paramount. In this respect Balanandan excel in conveying hard to understand theoretical and practical refinements of capitalism and socialism in such simple terms that everyone understands.
He became a legislator in the Kerala Assembly in 1967 and till 1977 he represented the Vadakkekera constituency in Ernakulam district. In 1980, he became a Lok Sabha member and then moved on to the upper house in 1988. He remained a Rajya Sabha MP till 2000. He used to take parliamentary work in right earnest by giving focus to raise problems concerning industrial and agricultural workers.
As representative of CITU, CPI (M), and member of Parliamentary delegation Balanandan visited several countries. They include Soviet Union, Vietnam, United Nations in New York, North Korea, Algeria, China and Cuba.
Though he grew to become a great leader he mingled freely with rank and file. To all and sundry he was just Saami. He carried no air of superciliousness. He was affable and humane. These qualities endeared him to all. Heated ideological differences did not deter him to mingle endearingly with all. The love and affection of people was evident from large number of people who attended his funeral.
Balanadan is survived by his wife Sarojini, one son, three daughters and eight grand children. Sarojini is member of CPI (M)'s Kerala State Committee. The sons and daughters are well off in life. Balanadan had had, in retrospect, happy and contended family life.
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