Senior Congress leader and former MLA Prayar Gopalakrishnan died here on Saturday. He was 73.
Mr. Gopalakrishnan had suffered cardiac arrest while he was travelling on the day. He breathed his last at a private hospital in the State capital.
Mr. Gopalakrishnan was elected to the State Legislative Assembly from the Chadayamangalam constituency in 2001. A former president of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), he was also a long-time chairman of the Kerala Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Milma).
Mr. Gopalakrishnan's tenure as TDB president had ended when the CPI(M)-led LDF government, in a contentious move, brought an ordinance reducing the term of the board to two years.
Born to R. Krishnan Nair and J. Meenakshi Amma in 1949, Mr. Gopalakrishnan entered politics through the KSU. He was college union chairman, SN College, Kollam, and later, district president of the Youth Congress. He was founder-president of the Kerala State Milk Societies Association, and chairman of Milma from its inception to 2000.
Mr. Gopalakrishnan also served as vice president, Indian Dairy Association, and member, National Dairy Development Board. He leaves behind his wife Sudharma S. and three children.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in a condolence message, recalled Mr. Gopalarishnan's long stint in the State's cooperative sector. Leader of the Opposition V. D. Satheesan said Mr. Gopalakrishnan's death is a big loss to the Congress. Mr. Gopalakrishnan was instrumental in Milma's growth as a major institution in the cooperative sector, he recalled.
