Kesavan Balakrishnan (March 18, 1924 – July 16, 1984) was a politician, publisher, writer, columnist and editor. He was born to C. Kesavan, former Chief Minister of the erstwhile Travancore-Cochin state, and Mrs. Vasanthi. He had taken active part in the struggle for independence and was jailed six times.

Life Events

Balakrishnan was one of the founding leaders of the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) in

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 ...

. He was elected as an MLA to the Travancore-Cochin State Assembly in 1954 from the constituency of Trivandrum II. In 1971 he became the MP representing the constituency of

Ambalapuzha Ambalappuzha is a small town in the Alappuzha district of Kerala state, India. It is located south of Alappuzha which is the district headquarters. Ambalappuzha is divided into the two panchayats of Ambalapuzha North and Ambalapuzha South. D ...

Loksabha 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-past-th ...

. He would later go on to receive the Thamarapathram, an award given to outstanding politicians and activists by the government of India. K. Balakrishnan is best remembered as the editor and publisher of ''Kaumudi'' weekly―a periodical started by his grand father C V Kunhiraman―that was widely popular in the southern parts of the present Kerala state. A unique feature in the weekly, 'pathradhiparodu chodikkuka' (Ask the editor) in which readers could ask the editor about anything under the sun (but not a quiz session) was immensely appreciated by most readers.

Books

* Niramillatha Marivillu * Kalayalavu Oru varsham * Sahyadri Sanukalil ( Travelogue) * Nananjupoyi enkilum Jwala ( Auto Biography) * Madhuvidu Premam * Manja Jalam * Kedatha Jwala (his biography written by notable journalist Prasannarajan)

K Balakrishnan Memorial Award

This is an award issued to outstanding journalists in Kerala in memory of K. Balakrishnan (constituted by Balakrishnan Smaraka Samithi).

References

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Malayali politicians Malayalam-language writers 1924 births 1984 deaths People from Kollam district Writers from Kollam Revolutionary Socialist Party (India) politicians {{Kerala-politician-stub