Shapurji Saklatvala

British Politician

Shapurji Saklatvala was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India on March 28th, 1874 and is the British Politician. At the age of 61, Shapurji Saklatvala biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.

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Date of Birth
March 28, 1874
Nationality
United Kingdom
Place of Birth
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Death Date
Jan 16, 1936 (age 61)
Zodiac Sign
Aries
Profession
Politician
Shapurji Saklatvala Height, Weight, Eye Color and Hair Color

At 61 years old, Shapurji Saklatvala physical status not available right now. We will update Shapurji Saklatvala's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

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Shapurji Saklatvala Religion, Education, and Hobbies
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Hobbies
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Education
St. Xavier's College
Shapurji Saklatvala Spouse(s), Children, Affair, Parents, and Family
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Shapurji Saklatvala Career

Saklatvala was a committed socialist, and first joined the Independent Labour Party (ILP) in Manchester in 1909.

The Bolshevik Revolution in Russia of November 1917 was an inspiration to Saklatvala, and following the establishment of the Communist International in 1919, he became active in attempting to affiliate the ILP with that new organisation. Saklatvala joined with Emile Burns, R. Palme Dutt, J. Walton Newbold, Helen Crawfurd, and others as part of an organised faction called the Left Wing Group of the ILP which was dedicated to this effort. When the affiliation drive by Saklatvala and the ILP's left wing ended in failure in the party's March 1921 national conference, Saklatvala left the organisation with the others in the Left Wing Group to join the new Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB).

He attended the 2nd Pan-African Congress held in Paris in 1921 as a delegate of the CPGB.

In the October 1922 general election, the Communist Party of Great Britain launched its first electoral campaign, putting forward candidates in six constituencies. Saklatvala ran in the Battersea North district of London, one of two Communists to receive the official endorsement of the Labour Party – which was in effect an umbrella organisation which included affiliated political parties like the ILP as well as representatives of various trade unions. Saklatvala won election in North Battersea, receiving 11,311 votes – topping his nearest rival by more than 2,000 votes. Also elected running as a Communist, without official Labour Party support, was J. Walton Newbold, capturing a plurality of the vote in Motherwell.

Saklatvala was accepted into the Labour Party's parliamentary caucus, but while Newbold applied for the same, he was rejected. This did not stop Saklatvala and Newbold from joint activity, however, and the pair attempted to raise the demands of the unemployed and the cause of cheap housing and lower rents whenever possible. Newbold wound up being suspended from the House in May 1923 over his actions with respect to the Curzon ultimatum during the French occupation of the Ruhr.

The November 1923 general election saw the CPGB putting forward 9 of its members as candidates, including Shapurji Saklatvala in Battersea North, where he was unanimously adopted as the nominee of the Battersea Labour Party. Although not all the Communist candidates were endorsed by the Labour Party, they all were the recipients of support from local Labour activists. Despite modest gains for Labour in the election overall, the results of the election returned the Conservatives as the largest party in the House of Commons (although their number of seats fell from 346 to 259). All Communist candidates were defeated in the 1923 election, however, including Saklatvala in Battersea North.

The 1924 general election came in the wake of the so-called Zinoviev letter and saw the Conservatives increase their vote by more than 2 million to win the election. The Labour Party saw a net loss of 42 seats despite contesting more constituencies than ever before. In Battersea North, Saklatvala ran without formal Labour Party endorsement for the first time, but still managed to win election by a slim margin of 544 votes, the only one of 8 CPGB candidates elected.

Saklatvala was arrested during the 1926 General Strike following a speech he made in support of striking coal miners and was jailed for two months on charge of sedition.

He was active in the League Against Imperialism from the time of its formation in 1927.

Saklatvala's parliamentary career was effectively ended when he lost his seat in the 1929 general election. He ran again in 1930 in a by-election in Glasgow Shettleston without success, and mounted a final losing campaign in the 1931 general election in Battersea.

In 1934 he visited the Soviet Union to tour the Union's Far Eastern republics, whose governance he compared favourably to that in British India. During that tour he suffered a heart attack but recovered.

During the 1935 general election Saklatvala was active in the electoral campaigns of Harry Pollitt and Willie Gallacher.

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