Dinkar Krishnalal Mehta (17 October 1907 – 30 August 1989) was an Indian politician and trade unionist. Mehta headed the communist movement in Gujarat for decades – leading the Gujarat state unit of the Communist Party of India between 1936 and 1964, and then the Communist Party of India (Marxist) between 1964 and 1989. He served as a legislator of Bombay State and Mayor of Ahmedabad. Mehta was a prominent leader of the Mahagujarat movement, which struggled for the creation of a Gujarati linguistic state.
Mehta was born on 17 October 1907.[1] [2] As a young man, Mehta become involved with the Sabarmati Ashram of Mahatma Gandhi. Mehta took part in the 1928 Bardoli Satyagraha and led the 1930 Dharasana Satyagraha.[1] [2] He was jailed for his role in the civil disobedience movements.[1] He graduated in social sciences from Gujarat Vidyapith in 1929, and would later teach there until 1933.[1] In 1934, he took part in founding the Gujarat unit of the Congress Socialist Party (CSP).[2]
In 1935, he became a member of the Communist Party of India.[2] As of 1936, the CPI placed him in charge of leading the party in Gujarat. He served as joint secretary of the Congress Socialist Party between 1936 and 1938.[2] He was suspended from the CSP membership in 1938 for disobeying its general secretary's instructions.[3] He organised trade unions and other mass organizations. He spent the years of 1940–1942 underground.[2]
Mehta was arrested in 1948, but managed to escape from jail the following year.[2] He would remain underground until 1951.[2] Mehta stood as the CPI candidate in the Ahmedabad III constituency in the 1952 Bombay Legislative Assembly election, standing against Congress candidate Indumati Chimanlal.[4] Mehta finished in second place with 4,793 votes (17.76%).[4] A by-election for one of the Ahmedabad City seats in the Bombay Legislative Assembly was held on 4 June 1952. The Indian National Congress fielded the Chief Minister Morarji Desai, CPI fielded Mehta. Desai won the seat with 18,583 votes (61.08%) against 11,841 (38.92%) votes for Mehta.[5] [6] [7]
He was elected to the Central Committee of CPI at its 1953 Madurai Party Congress.[8]
Mehta was the Vice President of Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad between 1957 and 1960.[2] He contested the unreserved seat of Gomtipur constituency in the 1957 Bombay Legislative Assembly election as an independent candidate, obtaining 37,862 votes (897 less votes than the winning candidate).[9] He was a Member of the Legislative Council of the Bombay State between 1958 and 1960.[2] He stood as the Nutan Maha Gujarat Janta Parishad candidate in the Dariapur Kazipur constituency in the 1962 Gujarat Legislative Assembly election, finishing in second place with 17,237 votes (48.69%).[10]
When the CPI was split in 1964, Mehta would join the Communist Party of India (Marxist).[2] Before the split, Mehta was the CPI Gujarat State Council Secretary and a member of the National Council of the party.[11] [12] He had not joined walk-out protest at the CPI National Council meeting on 11 April 1964, which marked the emergence of the Left CPI (later CPI(M)) as a separate party, but was identified as a leftist within CPI.[11] [12] Mehta attended the Tenali convention of the Left CPI in July 1964, and afterwards organised a special convention at Ahmedabad to present a report from Tenali.[13] On 5 August 1964, the Maha Gujarat Janata Parishad organized a state-wide hartal (general strike).[11] [14] Mehta took part in mobilising mill workers to join the strike.[15] After the hartal, Mehta and other party leaders were arrested.[11]
Mehta was elected to the Central Committee of CPI(M) at the 7th Party Congress, held at Calcutta in October–November 1964.[16] He became the Gujarat State Committee Secretary of CPI(M), a post he would hold until his death.[17] Mehta authored many works on Marxist theory in Gujarati language.[17]
Mehta was elected the Mayor of Ahmedabad in 1966, and served in the role until 1967.[2] [17] He contested the Dariapur Kazipur seat again in the 1967 Gujarat Legislative Assembly election, as an independent, finishing in second place with 19,574 votes (43.68%).[18]
Dinkar Mehta died on 30 August 1989.[2] [17] He had suffered from ill health during the last years in his life.[17]