Former Kerala Minister Thankappan dies

Thiruvananthapuram: Veteran CPI(M) leader and former Kerala minister, V J Thankappan died Saturday due to age-related ailments at his residence in nearby Neyyattinkara. He was 87, family sources said. A member of the Left party since 1963, Thankappan had served as a minister in the E K Nayanar cabinet during the 1987-91 period. 

He had represented Nemom constituency thrice and Neyyattinakara once in the assembly. Besides acting as the pro-tem speaker of the assembly, the Left leader had also served as the Neyyattinkara Municipality chairman and councillor, party sources said. He is survived by his wife and three children. 

Condoling his death, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said Thankappan had been a good administrator and MLA who had made remarkable contributions in strengthening the local self-government (LSG) institutions. In his capacity as LSG minister, the late leader had played a key role in successfully implementing decentralisation in the state, Vijayan said in his message here.