K Karunakaran, Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala dies

Mtoday news

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 23: K. Karunakaran, senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala died at 5.30 pm in a private hospital at Thiruvananthapuram. He was 92. The veteran Congress leader was hospitalized of pneumonia and heart ailments since December 10.

 

Ventilator support was resumed yesterday for the 92-year old leader after he suffered acute breathing trouble following a stroke at the Ananthapuri Hospital, where he was admitted on December 10. Though his condition improved with in two days of hospitalization, his health deteriorated since yesterday. He died at 5.30 today. His son, Muralidharan and daughter Padmaja Venugopal was at his side at the time death.


His wife Kalyanikutty Amma died 15 years back. He is survived by his son K Muraleedharan, a former KPCC President and daughter Padmaja Venugopal, a member of the KPCC executive committee.

He was born on July 5, 1918 at Chirackkal in Kannur and began his political innings as a freedom fighter and trade union leader. The veteran leader was one of the founding members of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) in 1947.
 
He was elected seven times consecutively to the Kerala Legislative Assembly since 1967 and served as Chief Minister of Kerala four times -- 1977-78, 1981-1982, 1982-1987 and 1991-1995.

He also served as Union Industries Minister in Narasimha Rao Government from 1995-96.

In 2005 Karunakaran floated a new party called Democratic Indira Congress saying he and his son K Muraleedharan were being sidelined by the Congress leadership. However, in 2006, the party merged with NCP and Karunakaran returned to Congress in 2008. Karunakaran was an astute politician and was called ’Chanakya’ by his supporters.

However, Congress High Command has been non-committal towards his son’s return to Congress -- something the veteran leader was not happy about.

Congress leaders and other politicians have condoled the demise of this renowned politician.