Sher-e-Bangla’s death anniversary: How the pivotal ‘Krishak Praja Party’ lost its lustre

There was already an existing organization for farmers called "Nikhil Banga Praja Samiti". However, it failed to play an adequate role in changing the fate of Bengal's peasants. As a result, Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq, who had been a part of this association since its establishment in 1929, decided to leave the party in 1936.

He felt that even as one of the five vice-presidents of the "Nikhil Banga Praja Samiti", he was unable to properly contribute to changing the farmers' fate. After this realisation, he felt the urge to form a separate political party.

In July 1936, Sher-e-Bangla founded a new political party in Dhaka called the Krishak Praja Party (KPP). This marked Bengal's first political party dedicated to farmers' rights. Sher-e-Bangla became the first leader to give peasants proper political recognition.

The party's impact was immediate – in the 1937 elections, the KPP won an impressive 36 seats. This extraordinary popularity of a one-year-old party surprised everyone and proved farmers' growing political influence.

Over time, the Krishak Praja Party (KPP) gradually lost its influence due to several reasons. These included the forming of a coalition government with the Muslim League and other parties, inadequate representation of KPP leaders in the cabinet (only two members secured ministerial positions), Sher-e-Bangla's growing focus on retaining political power rather than the party's original agrarian mission. 

Apart from the aforementioned reasons, internal strife, rebellion, expulsions, and counter-expulsions were the other reasons why the party could not sustain for a long time and eventually began to decline. 

The party had become virtually defunct by 1943. Yet, it clung to a fragile existence, limping along until 1946. In that year's elections, the KPP managed to win only four seats.

After the Partition of 1947, Sher-e-Bangla returned to Dhaka and established a new political party called the Krishak Sramik Party. This marked the complete end of the original Krishak Praja Party (KPP).

The KPP existed for only 11 years, but its impact has been everlasting. Under its leadership, the zamindari (feudal landlord) system was abolished in Bengal, peasants regained full rights over their lands, and agricultural tax rates were significantly reduced.

Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq as the leader of KPP, implemented several revolutionary reforms such as waiving farmers' loans and thus liberating them from moneylenders' exploitation, introducing interest-free loan systems for agricultural needs, digging canals across the country to improve irrigation, and making primary education free for the farmers' children.  

Sher-e-Bangla died on April 27, 1962. Sixty-three years have passed, but Bengal's farmers have never found another leader like him.