Kannur : Veteran journalist and early day communist, PK Kunjananthapan has passed away aged 96. The end came at his ancestral home of Narath in Kannur late evening.
Kunjananthan was the founder secretary of erstwhile Balabharatha Sangham , the children’s wing of communist party christened as the current Bala Sangham. Balabharatha Sangham was formed in the year 1938 in Kalyassery. At the first Indian Communist Party Congress held in 1943 in Bombay, Kunjananthan was the youngest delegate attendee. He was also a participant in the first communist party state Sammelanam(conference) held in 1943.
Kunjananthan was born to Ananthan Nair and Sreedevi on 26 Nov, 1926. He made his way into national politics through activism in school days and partaking in Students Federation. Kunjananthan gained cell membership in 1939 and became a full member of the party in 1942. During 1945 - 46 he carried out covert operations for the party in Bombay. Later he served in capacity of Central Committee member in Kolkata in 1948 and in Delhi from 1953 - 58. When the Indian Communist party split, Kunjananthan opted to stand by CPI(M).
Kunjananthan worked for pro-Left weekly Blitz from while being settled in Berlin - a tag that pre-fixed itself to his name in years later. Kunjanathan wrote extensively in dailies of New Age, Deshabhimani, Nava Yugam, Nav Jeevan, and Janayugum, exposing t plots worked by US Spy agency CIA to dislodge governments in the third world.
Though terminated from the CPI(M) in 2005 over controversial stance towards party, Kunjananthan was reinstated with membership later.
The demise today has come over prolonged age-related ailments. Wife : Saraswathiamma; Daughtern: Usha(Berlin), Son-in-law : Bener. Siblings : Late Meenakshi, Janaki, Karthiyani.
