Thengamam Balakrishnan (April 1, 1927 – July 3, 2013) was an Indian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

, and leader of

Communist Party of India Communist Party of India (CPI) is the oldest Marxist–Leninist communist party in India and one of the nine national parties in the country. The CPI was founded in modern-day Kanpur (formerly known as Cawnpore) on 26 December 1925. H ...

. He was former Chief editor of

Janayugom ''Janayugom'' is a Malayalam daily newspaper published in Kerala, India. It is the official organ of the Kerala State Council of the Communist Party of India. It is the first newspaper in India using free software. Originally started in 1947 as ...

. He represented

Adoor Adoor (sometimes spelled ''Adur'') is a Municipality in Pathanamthitta district of Kerala State, India. It is the headquarters of Adoor Taluk and Adoor Revenue Division. Etymology Adoor (Ad-oor) in Malayalam translates as "Ad" means "separ ...

constituency in the

Kerala Legislative Assembly The Kerala Legislative Assembly, popularly known as the Kerala Niyamasabha, is the State Assembly of Kerala, one of the 28 states in India. The Assembly is formed by 140 elected representatives. Each elected member represents one of the 140 c ...

from 1970 to 1977.

Biography

He was born as the eldest son of Madhavan and Naniamma of Thengamam on April 1, 1927. Influenced by the freedom movement and national leaders, Thengamam began his public life through

All India Students Federation The All India Students' Federation (AISF) is the oldest surviving student organisation in India, founded in 1936. Pre-independence AISF was founded on 12 August 1936, with guidance and cooperation from the Indian independence movement. The ...

. Even during the student life, he was arrested and suffered police brutality for his public activism. He had served as member of

Kerala Public Service Commission The Kerala Public Service Commission (KPSC) is a body created by the Constitution of India to select applicants for civil service jobs in the Indian state of Kerala according to the merits of the applicants and the rules of reservation. The Hea ...

, vice-president of Kerala Grandhasala Sangam and editor of Grandalokam. Thengamam was married to Nirmala, they have two daughters and one son. He died on July 3, 2013, at the age of 86.Thengamam Balakrishnan passes away
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References

1927 births 2013 deaths Journalists from Kerala Indian editors Kerala MLAs 1970–1977 People from Pathanamthitta district 20th-century Indian journalists Indian male journalists Communist Party of India politicians from Kerala {{Kerala-CPIndia-politician-stub