Cong leader and former Kerala Speaker Vakkom Purushothaman dead

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Veteran Congress leader and former Kerala Speaker Vakkom Purushothaman, who also served as Governor of Mizoram, passed away at a private hospital here on Monday. He was 96. Purushothaman was taken to a private hospital here in the morning due to some age-related health problems and died there, a party leader said.

His mortal remains were brought back to his residence at Kumarapuram here later in the day and kept for the public to pay their respects to the Congress veteran. Purushothaman, entered politics as a Students' Congress activist in 1946 and rose to become a state minister, Assembly Speaker, Governor of Mizoram and also Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands during his career spanning nearly seven decades. In addition to that, his list of accomplishments includes being the Speaker of the Kerala Assembly twice-a record in itself-two times as an MP from Alappuzha and five times as an MLA from the Attingal assembly constituency.

The mortal remains would be taken to the Thiruvananthapuram DCC office on Tuesday morning for Congress leaders to pay their respects, and then will be taken as part of a mourning procession to Attingal, where public would also get a chance to pay tribute, party sources said. Thereafter, the body would be taken to his ancestral home in Vakkom, where the funeral would be held on Wednesday morning, the party said. Purushothaman, who was known for his administrative skills and strictness, was a cabinet minister in the Kerala government from 1971-1977, 1980 to 1981 and 2004 to 2006.