Kannoth Karunakaran was a former
Chief Minister of Kerala, Home Minister of Government of Kerala, and Cabinet Minister for Industries of
Government of India. He was one of the most influential, prominent and controversial persons in Kerala politics for at least four decades and was affectionately called "Leader" by Congress activists. K. Karunakaran is often regarded a master tactician, the "king" of Kerala state politics, and political troubleshooter at national level, and the creator of
United Democratic Front.
As a member of the Congress Party he was elected seven times to the Kerala Legislative assembly between 1965 and 1995 and served as Chief Minister three times. In 2005 owing to differences with Sonia Gandhi and then Kerala Chief Minister,
Oommen Chandy he acrimoniously split from the Congress Party and formed a breakaway party called the
Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran). Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran) played a significant role in Kerala politics during its brief history. As a partner of both the LDF and the UDF at different times, it has been a major factor in success and failure for the two coalitions. In November 2006 the party merged with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), a member of the LDF. Later, K. Karunakaran and his daughter Padmaja returned to Indian National Congress following a spilt. However his son K. Muraleedharan dissociated himself from his father and continued in NCP. Karunakaran died on 23 December 2010 aged 92 at Ananthapuri Hospital in
Thiruvananthapuram.
He was often criticized for
nepotism. Karunakaran’s dominating presence in the Congress party as well as other factors resulted in growing factionalism within the Kerala section of the Congress party. Karunakaran and
A. K. Antony were dubbed as the political
Tom and Jerryequivalents for their intra-party activities.
Karunakaran was noted for his steadfast devotion for god Krishna at the famous Guruvayoor Temple in Kerala state.
Early life and Education:
Karunakaran was born on 5 July 1918 at Chirackkal in Kannur District to Thekkedathu Ramunni Marar and Kannoth Kalyani Amma with birth star “Karthika". His father Ramunni Marar was a 'sirastadar', a government job under the then British Malabar state government. He had two elder brothers (Kunjiraman Marar and Balakrishnan Marar) and a younger brother (Damodaran Marar aka Appunni Marar). Their only sister Devaki died when she was merely 5 years old.
As a young boy, Karunakaran was passionate about swimming, football and volleyball. He also demonstrated ample interest in painting. During his early years, while being admitted to the lower primary school, he insisted not to add the caste name 'Marar' to his official name at the school unlike the normal practice of those days.
He started his school education in Vadakara LP School and continued through Andalloor and then Chirakkal Raja's School till eighth standard. Later, he had to undergo prolonged treatment due to an eye-related disorder, and was thus relocated (with his elder brother Kunjirama Marar) to the home of his uncle Puthenveettil Raghavan Nair at Vellanikkara, a village, ten kilometer away from Thrissur. The two brothers would later actively participate in the prevailing anti-British struggles since an early age. The stay at Thrissur would transform their life altogether and engulf them into the politics and trade union activism that was brewing up in the region.
After continuing the school at Sarkar High School, Thrissur (presently Govt. Model Boys High School, Thrissur), Karunakaran wanted to pursue his career in drawing and painting. He joined the Maharaja's Technical Institute (MTI), Thrissur for a Diploma in Design and Drawing. Although he earned the Diploma with a Gold Medal, except for a short stint at a Fine Arts Institute in Thrissur he did not take up painting as a profession and instead turned his attention completely towards the political issues. However, as an artist, he recalls in his biography, his paintings were appreciated well and many of them would fetch a price as good as Rs. 500 per piece.
As a Complete Politician:
In 1937, Karunakaran joined the flood relief camps that were conducted by V.R. Krishnan Ezhuthachan, C. Achyutha Menon, R.M. Manakkalath and other leaders of Prajamandalam, an early freedom struggle movement in Cochin State. He became a member of the
Indian National Congress and began to wear Khadi. He also participated intensively in the trade union activities in the vast Thattil rubber estates where his uncle Raghavan Nair was a 'writer'. During this time, he would spare his artistic skills and labour in helping the workers' union (later INTUC) for their wall writings and campaigns. Gradually, he was picked up by Panampilly Govinda Menon as his most favourite follower. In due course, Karunakaran rose to a level of the senior-most Leader of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (
INTUC). The INTUC later became one of the largest trade unions in India having with over 4 million memberships today. He went on to become the Thrissur District Congress Committee President, after which he was elected to the Cochin Legislative Assembly twice before the formation of Kerala State.
He contested in the 1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections against a strong trade unionist and an ex. congressmen, Krishnan Menon, when no one in the state Congress party came up front to oppose Mr. Menon. When the results came, Karunakaran lost by less than one thousand votes, and Krishnan Menon was heard saying, "Nhan anu sarikku tottatu. (I am the one who really lost.)
Karunakaran in Power:
Karunakaran was denied a Congress ticket in the 1960 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections, after which he was allotted a ticket to contest from a strong Communist stronghold, Thrissur's Mala constituency in the 1965 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections. Karunakaran surprised everyone by defeating the left front candidate by more than 3000 votes, and since represented the constituency in 1967, 1970, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1987, and 1991. He was first elected as the Congress Legislative Party leader in 1967 after the then leader
A. J. John, Anaparambil resigned after saying, "itu Karunakarane konde nadattikkondu pokuvan pattu (only Karunakaran can run this)." He took over the State Congress Legislative Party's machinery when Congress was down to only 9 MLAs in the assembly.
Karunakaran is the founder of
United Democratic Front (UDF) in 1970. He evinced utmost care in ensuring cordiality, unity and understanding among the constituent parties, and he commanded absolute control and due respect from them.
His closeness to the Nehru family begins from
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and culminated and pinnacled during the tenure of
Indira Gandhiand
Rajiv Gandhi. Karunakaran played the role of "King Maker" in finding out a successor to Rajiv Gandhi. Being the senior mostensuing elections of 1977.
Karunakaran has been the Chief Minister of Kerala four times. He took charge as Chief Minister for the first time on 25-3-1977. However he tendered his resignation on 25-4-1977, immediately following certain references by the
Kerala High Court in what came to be known as
Rajan case.
He took charge as Chief Minister again on December 28, 1981. However, this ministry did not last long. He resigned on 17 March 1982, following the withdrawal of support by a member of the Kerala Congress (M). Midterm elections to the 7th Kerala Legislative Assembly was held on May 19, 1982. The Ministry with Shri. K.Karunakaran as Chief Minister assumed office on 24 May 1982 and continued till 1987. On June 24, 1991, Shri.K.Karunakaran took charge again as Chief Minister of Kerala for the fourth term, and resigned on March 16, 1995, making way for A.K.Antony to take up the Chief Minister ship. Later Career & Death:
After
A. K. Antony was elected as Kerala chief minister in 2001, Karunakaran was on the warpath with the Government led by his own party and the party high command. After a series of unsuccessful attempts to regain supremacy in the Kerala wing of the Indian National Congress, the dissidents led by him landed up in the bad books of the Congress high command. With the sharp increase in factional meetings held all over Kerala, mostly led by his son
K. Muraleedharan, Indian National Congress suspended Muraleedharan from the party.
As a veteran parliamentarian, whose career stretches over five decades, Karunakaran has been elected three times to
Rajya Sabha and to
Lok Sabha twice. He was a member of Rajya Sabha during 1995-97, 1997–98 and 2004-2005. He has been elected to Lok Sabha from
Thiruvananthapuram in 1998 and from
Mukundapuram constituency in 1999. Karunakaran served as the Minister for Industries in the Union Cabinet for one year in 1995.
Karunakaran died on 23 December 2010 aged 92 at Ananthapuri Hospital in
Thiruvananthapuram. He was suffering from respiratory problems, fever and other age related diseases and was hospitalized on 21 October 2010. His condition worsened following a stroke and the death occurred when he had a
cardiac arrest. His death was confirmed by doctors at 5:30 PM. It was coincidental that his death and Narasimha Rao's death was on same date. Karunakaran had played key role in backing the Rao Government and later Rao had dismissed Karunakaran from the chair of Chief Minister of Kerala. His funeral was attended by the prime minister
Manmohan Singh and the AICC chief
Sonia Gandhi.
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