Balakrishna Pillai
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Keezhoote Raman Balakrishna Pillai (8 March 1935 – 3 May 2021) was an Indian politician who served as minister of the state of
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
in India, holding portfolios such as Transport and Electricity. He was a member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly from Kottarakara constituency in
Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 List of districts in Kerala, districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major Lac ...
for almost three decades. He was the Chairman of
Kerala Congress (B) Kerala Congress (B) is a registered-unrecognized political party in Kerala, formed by R. Balakrishna Pillai, a former minister of the government of Kerala. At present, the party has one MLA in the state Legislative Assembly, namely K. B. Gane ...
. Throughout his political career, Pillai remained a controversial figure in Kerala state politics. He was the first Kerala minister to be imprisoned for corruption. ''Gandeevam'', a biography of Pillai written by
Vrindavanam Venugopalan Vrindavanam Venugopalan (24 October 1935 – 25 December 2009) was an Indian journalist, educationist and writer who wrote in both Malayalam and English. Venugopalan was the editor of ''Viswakeralam Daily'', and an acclaimed biographer. He ...
with a foreword by
Sooranad Kunjan Pillai Sooranad P. N. Kunjan Pillai (24 June 1911 8 March 1995) was an Indian researcher, lexicographer, poet, essayist, literary critic, orator, grammarian, educationist, and scholar of the Malayalam language, best remembered for his contributions i ...
, was published by Viswakeralam Daily. Pillai's autobiography was published by
DC Books DC Books is a publisher in Kerala publisher of books in Malayalam, and one of the publishers in India . It also operates one of the largest book store chains in India, with a network of over 45 bookshops under the DC Books and Current Books b ...
in 2011. He also acted in two Malayalam movies in 1979 and 1980 - ''
Vedikkettu ''Vedikkettu'' () is a 1980 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by K. A. Sivadas and produced by Thevannur Maniraj and Santha Gopinathan Nair. The film stars Sukumaran, Jalaja, Prameela and Ramesh in the lead roles. The film has musical sco ...
'' and '' Ival Oru Naadody''. Prisoner 5990 is his autobiography.


Personal life

Balakrishna Pillai was born on 3 April 1935, in Valakom near Kottarakkara in Kollam district, as the son of Keezhoote Raman Pillai and Karthyayani Amma. His father was a wealthy
Nair The Nair , also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom histo ...
landlord with plenty of land in the present-day Kerala and
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...
states. He was married to Vatsala and has two daughters and a son. The latter,
K. B. Ganesh Kumar Keezhoote Balakrishna Pillai Ganesh Kumar (born 25 May 1966) is an Indian actor, television host, and politician. Ganesh Kumar is a proposed cabinet minister for the last 2.5 years in the ongoing 2nd LDF govt in Kerala and he is also the curre ...
, is a film actor and politician who served as a state minister during 200103 and 201113. His wife Vatsalakumari died on 3 January 2018 aged 76. Pillai died on 3 May 2021, at Vijaya hospital in
Kottarakkara Kottarakkara (IAST: Koṭṭārakkara), also transliterated as ''Kottarakara'', is a town and municipality in the Kollam district of the Kerala, India. The town is close to Kollam Port, which has a rich history linked to the early medieval pe ...
. He was admitted to the hospital a few days earlier owing to respiratory issues and was on ventilator support. His body was cremated with full state honours.


Political career


Student politics

R. Balakrishna Pillai was member of Thiruvathankur Students' Union (which later became Tirukochi Vidyarthi Federation and later Kerala Students' Union).


Indian National Congress

Balakrishna Pillai later joined the
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...
(INC) party. In 1960, he became member of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee executive and of the All India Congress Committee. He was elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly for the first time in 1960 from the Pathanapuram Assembly Constituency of
Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 List of districts in Kerala, districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major Lac ...
, as an INC candidate, at the age of 25 and holds the record for becoming the youngest MLA of Kerala.


Kerala Congress formation

In 1964, fifteen MLAs led by K. M. George (including Balakrishna Pillai) left the Congress and formed a regional party called the Kerala Congress, with George as the chairman and Pillai as general secretary. Pillai won the elections from his home constituency Kottarakara in 1965 but was defeated in the next two elections of 1967 and 1970. He was elected to the
Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-p ...
in the 1971 General Election from
Mavelikara Mavelikkara is a taluk and municipality in the ''Onattukara'' region of Alappuzha district in the Indian state of Kerala. Located in the southern part of the district on the banks of the Achankovil River. Etymology The name Mavelikara ...
constituency and served as the
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
(MP) until 1977. From December 1975 to June 1976, he served as the Minister for Transport, Excise and Jails in the Kerala Cabinet.


Kerala Congress split

After the death of K. M. George in 1976, there was tussle for control of the party between Balakrishna Pillai and
K. M. Mani Karingozhackal Mani Mani (30 January 1933 – 9 April 2019) was an Indian politician and the chairman of Kerala Congress (M), one of the main factions of Kerala Congress, a party born in the Travancore or Central South Kerala region which foc ...
. In 1977, the party split into the
Mani Mani may refer to: Geography * Maní, Casanare, a town and municipality in Casanare Department, Colombia * Mani, Chad, a town and sub-prefecture in Chad * Mani, Evros, a village in northeastern Greece * Mani, Karnataka, a village in Dakshi ...
and Pillai groups. He was re-elected to the state legislature in 1977 and then again in the general elections of 1980, 1982, 1987, 1991, 1996, and 2001, but was defeated in the 2006 election. His victory margin of 37,000 votes in 1980 remained a record for the State Assembly polls for more than a quarter century. He was a founder member of United Democratic Front (UDF). He was Minister for several years starting in different Ministries headed by
C. Achutha Menon Chelat Achutha Menon (13 January 1913 – 16 August 1991) was the Chief Minister of Kerala state for two terms. The first term was from 1 November 1969 to 1 August 1970 and the second 4 October 1970 to 25 March 1977. He was instrumental in ...
, K. Karunakaran, E. K. Nayanar, and A. K. Antony.


Punishment by Supreme Court

The government appointed Justice K. Sukumaran to inquire into allegations related to the Idamalayar and
Kallada Kallada is a village in Kollam district of the Indian state of Kerala. Maharaja Marthanda Varma of the kingdom of Travancore was born there. The Kallada River passes through there and the famous Chittumala Sree Durga Devi temple is situated there ...
Dam construction projects. Based on his report, R. Balakrishna Pillai and others were prosecuted by a Special Court. The Supreme Court on 10 February 2011 sentenced R. Balakrishna Pillai and two others to one-year imprisonment for allegedly abusing their position in the award of a contract for the Edamalayar hydroelectric power project.Apex court gives one-year jail to former Kerala minister
Sify.com (10 February 2011). Retrieved on 2 December 2011.
The
apex court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
bench of Justices P. Sathasivam and B.S. Chauhan reversed the Kerala High Court judgment which had acquitted all three. Chief Minister
V. S. Achuthanandan Velikkakathu Sankaran Achuthanandan (born 20 October 1923) is an Indian Communist politician who was the Chief Minister of Kerala from 2006 to 2011. At 82, he is the oldest person to have assumed the office. He served as the chairman of Admin ...
had moved the Supreme Court, in his personal capacity, challenging the verdict of acquittal and the apex court allowed Achuthanandan's appeal.


Filmography

* ''Mukhyamanthri'' * ''
Vedikkettu ''Vedikkettu'' () is a 1980 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by K. A. Sivadas and produced by Thevannur Maniraj and Santha Gopinathan Nair. The film stars Sukumaran, Jalaja, Prameela and Ramesh in the lead roles. The film has musical sco ...
'' * '' Ival Oru Naadody'' * Neelasaree


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillai, R. Balakrishna 1935 births 2021 deaths Malayali politicians People from Kollam district India MPs 1971–1977 Lok Sabha members from Kerala Kerala MLAs 1960–1964 Kerala MLAs 1977–1979 Kerala MLAs 1987–1991 Kerala MLAs 1996–2001 Kerala MLAs 1982–1987 Kerala MLAs 2001–2006 Indian National Congress politicians from Kerala Kerala Congress (B) politicians Indian politicians convicted of crimes Kerala Congress politicians Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India