Coup d ' état of Yanaon The Coup d ' état of Yanaon was a peaceful political coup incident at Yanam when India and France were in ongoing negotiations regarding the future of French settlements in India in 1954 . Yanam had pro - France ( anti - integration ) leaders like Samatam Krouschnaya , Kamichetty Sri Parassourama Varaprassada Rao Naidu and Kamichetty Venougopala Rao Naidou , in addition to pro - India ( pro - merger ) leaders like Dadala Raphael Ramanayya , V . Subbiah , Edouard Goubert and Madimchetty Satianandam . Most anti - integration leaders except Krouschnaya later switched sides to the pro - merger camp . The integration of the colony into independent India was also hastened by active intervention by India ' s consul Kewal Singh . The coup d ' état of Yanaon was interpreted differently by different people . While Indian nationalists considered it as an act of liberation , some pro - French leaders considered it as an act of treachery . Causes for Coup d ' État . The coup d ' état was part of the events leading up to the liberation and merger of French Indian colonies with India . Unlike all other French colonies in India , Yanam had several pro - French leaders that wished to resist and scuttle its integration into India . The immediate cause is said to be the decision of Kewal Singh on the night of 11 April 1954 at the conference at Kandamangalam . Since Yanam was small in area and in population , he requested Dadala Raphael Ramanayya for a plan for its liberation which ultimately resulted in the coup d ' état . Before the Coup . On 10 December 1953 , R . K . Tandon was transferred and Kewal Singh took his place as India ' s consul . He was able to wean away some anti - merger leaders and members of the representative assembly from the pro - France camp and took them to New Delhi . The unification movement gathered momentum under V . Subbiah , when Edouard Goubert switched his loyalty to the pro - merger camp . A momentous event in the freedom movement of Pondicherry occurred on 18 March 1954 , when the members of the executive council and mayor of Pondicherry and seven adjoining communes proclaimed their decision to merge with the Indian Union without a referendum . All the communes in Karaikal also followed suit . This decision was to be confirmed by the representative assembly . When the French India Socialist Party was preparing to move the merger resolution , the French Governor scuttled it by postponing the session . Provoked by this , the Socialists planned to capture the outlying communes one by one and move to Pondicherry . The Communist Party of India was also ready to launch a campaign to merge Pondicherry with India . Accordingly , the leaders of the French India Socialist Party hoisted the Indian National Flag atop the Nettapakkam police station on the last day of March in 1954 . Thus , a provisional government with Edouard Goubert as the head , was formed in the enclave of Nettapakkam . The Indian Armed Reserve was posted round its borders . In the meanwhile , negotiations were going on between the governments of India and France . Kewal Singh met all the leaders of the provisional government at a conference in Kandamangalam in the night of 11 April 1954 . He explained that the French authorities were not taking the provisional government at Nettapakkam seriously . He suggested that if the leaders wanted real liberation of all settlements , they should occupy any of the big four settlements . Subsequently , a plan was formed for Dadala Raphael Ramanayya to liberate Yanam . On 13 April 1954 , Dadala arrived in Yanam and proceeded to neighbouring Kakinada ( a town in the adjacent Indian state of Andhra Pradesh ) the next day . In Yanam , he was warned that he could be captured or killed if he ventured to start a nationalist agitation there . Next day Dadala was ambushed by the French administration ' s police at Farampeta village but managed to escape back to Indian territory . Dadala also purchased a large number of Indian flags and started a house - to - house campaign , requesting students and their leaders to organise a meeting in the town hall grounds . Along with his new nationalistic recruits , he hired lorries and made tours in the streets of Yanam , inviting the people to meetings . The French colonial police also raided some villages on Indian territory . Loudspeakers were installed around Yanam town , that played patriotic songs and explained to people the reasons for merger with India . Inside Yanam , anti - merger leaders such as Samatam Krouschnaya and Kamichetty Sri Parasurama Varaprasada Rao Naidu also organised meetings and counter - processions against the merger . At the beginning of June , the secretary - general of the French administration of Pondicherry met Dadala and informed him that the government was transferring the two European officials who were residing in Yanam . He requested safety of these officials from the nationalist volunteers while leaving the place . Dadala accompanied the two officials till Kakinada from where they departed by train to Pondicherry . Preparation for the Coup . Dadala made arrangements to take the administration of Yanam after consultation with the officials of Kakinada and other pro - merger Yanam leaders such as Madimchetty Satianandam ( the mayor of Yanam ) , Yerra Jagannatha Rao , Kamichetty Sri Parasurama Varaprasada Rao Naidu and Kanakala Tatayya Naidou . Kamichetty Parasuram Naidu agreed to join the pro - merger camp . Satianandam fled from Yanam fearing persecution by the French colonial administration and his home was pillaged . 78 - year - old physician Samatam Krouschnaya , a pro - France leader , was appointed as the interim mayor of Yanam . He was by now the lone anti - integration leader fighting against the merger . Coup d ' État de Yanaon . In the early morning of Sunday , 13 June 1954 , Dadala marched at the head of a few thousand non - violent and peaceful volunteers from Kakinada towards the bungalow of the chief administrator of Yanam , in order to capture it and hoist the Indian flag . Bayankar Achary , another Indian revolutionary and patriot was a member of the volunteer corps . Marching 50 yards ahead of his volunteers with a megaphone , he requested the French police and other officials to cooperate and surrender . The French police retaliated and threw grenades , which fell at 20 meters from Dadala and exploded harmlessly . Then they started firing on the unarmed volunteers . The volunteers took shelter behind the Manyam Zamindar ’ s choultry . Several policemen stopped firing and ran away to lock themselves inside the police building fearing mob fury . The nationalists surrounded them and had them disarmed . The volunteers combed the town and arrested all pro - France leaders and conducted spot trials against them . When they admitted to their guilt , clemency was shown to them and nobody was harmed . The peaceful coup d ' état of Yanam was announced by All India Radio and the mass media . The Indian National Flag was hoisted on the top of administrator ' s bungalow . The pro - merger group formed a new provisional government of Yanam headed by Dadala and adopted a resolution declaring the liberation of Yanam . Death of Samatam . Another significant event that happened that day was the death of Samatam Krouschnaya . During that day , he battled alone against all pro - merger groups for the continuation of French sovereignty over Yanam . Samatam died while trying to jump from a wall at Pydikondala house . The news of Samatam ' s death brought relief to many people in Yanam . Had Samatam survived that day , the coup d ' état could have been a failure . Aftermath . The coup d ' état of Yanaon enraged the French authorities of Pondicherry . Rumours were spread to the effect that the French were dispatching a cruiser to Yanam to capture pro - merger leaders and to re - establish their authority . Just three days before the coup , the last colonial chief administrator of Yanam , George Sala , was recalled by André Ménard , the then Governor General of Pondicherry . Dadala was appointed as acting commissioner of Yanam for 14 days . Towards the end of June 1954 , Kewal Singh paid a visit to Yanam and requested Dadala ' s return to Pondicherry to continue his activities there . On 3 July , Dadala left Yanam , after having made all arrangements for its proper administration . On 1 November 1954 , Yanam was de facto transferred to India . Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru visited Pondicherry on 16 January 1955 . Edouard Goubert , S . Perumal , Dadala and Sri Pakirisamy Pillai presented addresses to Pandit Nehru in a public meeting in the maidan of Gorimedu . France declared it was not responsible for the events occurred after 13 June 1954 in the Treaty of Cession signed by French and Indian authorities on 28 May 1956 . Dadala was appointed as high - ranking officer in the department of the state of Andhra Pradesh until he retired on 29 June 1963 , three days before the de jure and final merger of Yanam into the newly formed Indian Union territory of Pondicherry .