C. Achutha Menon

C. Achutha Menon Biography

C. Achutha Menon was the Chief Minister of Kerala 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, the only chief minister of Kerala to decorate that position continuously for two terms. He belonged to Communist Party of India and led the party in the front when all over India Congress Party was fully dominating. He was instrumental in starting numerous institutions and development projects in Kerala.

Achutha Menon was born in Puthukkad, Thrissur District on 13 January 1913 as the son of Madathil Veettil Achutha Menon and LekshmykuttyAmma. His brother in law V.V. Raghavan was also a communist leader from Thrissur. Achutha Menon was brilliant in studies and was the first rank holder of SSLC examination in the then State of Kochi. He continued his studies at St. Thomas College, Thrissur and later at Chennai.  Then he studied Law in Law College, Thiruvananthapuram and scored the highest marks in Hindu Law. While he was engaged in legal practice, he began to get involved in social issues.

Achutha Menon started his political career as a Congress representative in Thrissur. He became a member of the Kochi Praja Mandalam and later joined Communist Party of India. His active participation in the party while it was banned resulted in his imprisonment for many years. Achutha Menon was elected to the Travancore-Cochin State Legislature in 1952. After the reorganization of the States in 1956, he became the first Finance Minister of Kerala in the Ministry headed by E.M.S. Namboodirippad in 1957.  He was elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly for the second time in 1960.

During the party split, he decided to stay with CPI. Achutha Menon assumed charge as the Chief Minister of Kerala on November 1^st, 1969 and continued till the dissolution of Third Kerala Legislative Assembly. He was a talented writer and has published many books on Marxism.

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Updated: October 09, 2013