If police lathis had sperms, i would have given birth to a thousand lathi babies; Gowri Amma’s lone fights which made records history

​​​​​​K R Gowri Amma’s legendary life was built on extraordinary and uncommon experiences, which stands unparalleled and cannot find similarity with any other leader of our lifetime. Gowri Amma who was the youngest member in legislative assembly responded to queries on her age from press persons in the following manner, “A political activist should be evaluated not on the basis of his/her age but how far they are involved with people’s problems.” Her political career stands testimony to this statement.

Gowri Amma always urged to live among the political workers like a fish which lives in water. The veteran commmunist stalwart who was childless, considered the party and her colleagues as everything. Thus for the comrades she became their mother. The leader who led her party through the red path and at the same time held the idol of Lord Sreekrishna by her heart thus has become a part of Malayali psyche’s historical consciousness.

Gowri Amma who said that if Lathis had sperm, she would have given birth to a thousand lathi babies, was an exceptional leader in the left front. Gowri Amma’s family background which further accelerated her journey with the left, got attracted towards the path of red through the student politics. Gowri Amma was also the first Ezhava girl to secure a degree in law.

She was never attracted towards the privileges of a rich family. Instead, she chose to fight for those whose life was submerging in mud. She was the only hope for a vast section of people who didn’t have any choice other than burying the dead bodies of their dear ones in the river after covering it with mat. Gowri Amma had played a pivotal role, in fulfilling the dream of land to the tenants in Kerala, who didn’t even have a scent of land even to cremate their dead ones.

Gowri Amma who became the revenue minister in the first communist government in Kerala, which became the first communist government in the world to attain power through ballot, later married her partner Comrade T V Thomas on the directions of the party leadership. Gowri Amma became an unignorable leader in Kerala politics for the next 50 years since the 1950s when her jail term started and also many years later.

From being the lone woman member in the first cabinet of Kerala, she started her lone fight when she was in the left camp and also after leaving them. That journey witnessed many records becoming part of history. The inspirational strength behind many path breaking legislations which changed the destiny of Kerala. Her debut in electoral politics began even before Travancore became part of Indian union.

Back in 1949, in the first election after introducing adult suffrage, most of the candidates of communist party lost except a few. All prominent leaders including T V Thomas lost the elections. Only four from the party reached the assembly. Gowri Amma was one among them. Three years later she avenged the humiliating defeat of her party, in 1951 while she was serving the jail term.

The initial years of her political life were ridden with uncompromising political fights against the feudal landlords and their gundas; later she fought against all destabilising forces until her death. This great woman who got expelled from the party which owes her blood, sweat and tears, even built a political party with her own charismatic personality, which later went on to defeat her mother party which she considered as breathing air.

In politics, Gowri Amma never had any doubts on her stands. She always gave utmost importance to the weaker sections of the society. Her political moves were devoted to women and tribal communities in the state. Despite implementing land reforms under her aegis, Gowri Amma was always concerned over the skewed land distribution to the tribal communities in the state. Gowri Amma had presented numerous private bills on the issue which even didn’t receive support of CPM. If votes were the concern then she would have never taken the issue to the forefront because there was nobody from any tribal community in her constituency of Aroor.