K. Babu, senior Congress leader in Kerala and Thripunithura MLA, quits active politics

K. Babu, senior Congress leader and MLA representing the Thripunithura Assembly constituency in Kerala, announced his retirement from active politics on Thursday.

“I thank my party, the United Democratic Front and the people of Thripunithura for always supporting me,” he told mediapersons at the Ernakulam District Congress Committee office in Kochi.

“The decision is personal. My senior leaders had requested me to contest in the forthcoming Assembly elections. I am making the announcement public after receiving their confirmation,” he said.

Mr. Babu said “the support of the people, party and its workers helped him to represent Thripunithura for long.” He exuded confidence that his party will “shortlist the best candidate” for the constituency and that the United Democratic Front will win the 2026 Assembly elections.

“The people are waiting to cast their vote against the Left Democratic Front,” he said.

Born on June 2, 1951 at Angamaly in Ernakulam district, Mr. Babu entered politics through the Kerala Students’ Union in 1996. He was the first and youngest chairman of the Angamaly municipality in 1979-80. He had held several positions in the Kerala unit of the Youth Congress and several trade unions. It was senior Congress leader A. K Antony, who asked him to try his luck in the Assembly elections in 1991 by contesting from Thripunithura, which was till then considered as a traditional Communist Party of India (Marxist) stronghold.

In 1991, he defeated M. M. Lawrence of the CPI(M) by a margin of 4, 946 votes. He was re-elected in the elections held in 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 and 2021. He was the Minister for Excise, Ports and Fisheries in the Oommen Chandy-led government in 2011.

He stepped down from the post in January 2016 after a court in Thrissur ordered the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau to register a case against him in the bar bribery scam. The controversy impacted his electoral prospects in the elections in 2016 when he was defeated by M. Swaraj of the CPI(M).

However, he bounced back and won the trust of the people in the 2021 elections after defeating Mr. Swaraj by a margin of 1, 232 votes. Though Mr. Swaraj had alleged that his rival candidate had canvassed votes on religious grounds, the Kerala High Court had dismissed his election petition. The CPI(M) leader withdrew his appeal before the Supreme Court in November 2025, seeking to declare the election of Mr. Babu null and void.