Goka Ramalingam (21 October 1921 – 1999) was an Indian politician who served in the Hyderabad Legislative Assembly and the successive Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 1952 until 1967. A member of the Indian National Congress, Ramalingam represented the Bhongir and Jangaon constituencies.
Goka Ramalingam | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 1957–1967 | |
| Preceded by | Syed Akhtar Hussain |
| Succeeded by | M. K. Ahmed |
| Constituency | Jangaon |
| In office 1956–1957 | |
| Preceded by | Himself |
| Succeeded by | Ravi Narayan Reddy |
| Constituency | Bhongir |
| Member of the Hyderabad Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 1952–1957 | |
| Preceded by | Ravi Narayan Reddy |
| Succeeded by | Himself |
| Constituency | Bhongir |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 21 October 1921 Jangaon, Hyderabad State, British India (now in Telangana, India) |
| Died | 27 November 1999 (aged 78) |
| Political party | Indian National Congress |
| Spouse | Goka Kumaramma |
Political career
editIn 1952, Ramalingam successfully ran as an Indian National Congress candidate for a by-election to the Hyderabad Legislative Assembly, defeating Govinddas Shroff of the People's Democratic Front by less than 300 votes in the Bhongir constituency.[1][2] Ramalingam succeeded Ravi Narayana Reddy of the PDF, who had been elected to the 1st Lok Sabha in the 1952 Indian general election.[3] Following the reorganization of Hyderabad State into Andhra Pradesh in 1956,[4] Ramalingam continued to represent the Bhongir constituency in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, the successor to the Hyderabad Legislative Assembly. In the 1957 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, Ramalingam was re-elected in the neighboring Jangaon constituency. He was re-elected again in the 1962 election.[5]
In the 1967 election, Ramalingam ran for re-election in the neighboring Cheriyal constituency, a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes. He was defeated by Boddu Abraham of the Communist Party of India, receiving 12,735 compared to Abraham's 15,195, with K. Devadanam of the Swatantra Party placing third with 7,248.[6][7] However, Ramalingam contested the election, claiming that because both Abraham and Devadanam had converted to Christianity, they were no longer members of a Scheduled Caste, as the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 stated that only Hindus and Sikhs could be members of a Scheduled Caste, with Ramalingam thus claiming that Abraham and Devadanam were ineligible to have run in the Cheriyal constituency.[7][8] On 21 August 1967, the Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled against Ramalingam and dismissed the case.[9]
Ramalingam's younger brother Goka Ramaswamy was also an MLA, representing the Ghanpur Station constituency in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, and serving as a cabinet minister from 1978 to 1982.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ Results of Bye-elections Held Since the First General Elections 1951-52 Upto the 31st July, 1955. New Delhi: Election Commission of India. 1956. p. 77 – via Google Books.
- ^ Sharma, I. Mallikarjuna (2002). In Retrospect: pt. 1. Andhra Pradesh : heroes and heroines of Telangana armed struggle. Hyderabad: Ravi Sasi Enterprises. p. 563. ISBN 978-81-88151-00-4 – via Google Books.
- ^ Patil, Shivraj (11 September 1991). "OBITUARY REFERENCE". Parliament of India. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
- ^ Koshi, Luke (2 November 2016). "The reorganization of states in India and why it happened". The News Minute. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
- ^ Report on the General Elections in India. Vol. 2. New Delhi: Election Commission of India. 1962. p. 117 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Cheriyal assembly election results in Andhra Pradesh". traceall.in. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
- ^ a b "Goka Ramalingam vs. Boddu Abraham and Another". Andhra Pradesh High Court. 21 August 1967. Retrieved 16 June 2022 – via The-Laws.com.
- ^ Annual Survey of Indian Law. New Delhi: Indian Law Institute. 1970. p. 204 – via Google Books.
- ^ The Supreme Court Reports. New Delhi: Supreme Court of India. 1969. p. 993 – via Google Books.