K.P. Unnikrishnan, former Union Minister and senior Congress leader, passes away

Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader K.P. Unnikrishnan passed away in the early hours of Tuesday (March 3, 2026). He was 89. Mr. Unnikrishnan had been undergoing treatment for age-related ailments at a private hospital in the city for some time. He is survived by his wife Amrita, and two daughters.

Mr. Unnikrishnan has the rare distinction of representing one Lok Sabha Constituency for the longest period of time in Kerala’s political history. He was the MP for Vadakara in Kozhikode from 1971 to 1996, representing three political parties. He first entered the Upper House of Parliament in 1971 on a Congress ticket. Mr. Unnikrishnan later continued his winning streak in the 1977, 1980, 1984, 1989, and 1991 elections as well. However, he was part of the Congress (U) and the Congress (S) after 1977. Though Mr. Unnikrishnan returned to the Congress in 1995, he could not win another term in the 1996 polls when he was defeated by O. Bharathan of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

Mr. Unnikrishnan also served as a Union Minister for Telecommunications, Shipping, and Surface Transport in the V.P. Singh Cabinet from 1989 to 1990. During this time, he led the evacuation of over 1.5 lakh Indians, mostly Keralites, from Kuwait during the Gulf War. Despite the Cabinet advising against it, he went to the hiding place of Iraq’s then President Saddam Hussein and successfully negotiated their return.

Born into a family of freedom fighters in Koyilandy in Kozhikode on September 20, 1936, Mr. Unnikrishnan was drawn into politics quite early in life. He was part of the socialist stream of thought in the Congress and a staunch supporter of Indira Gandhi in her earlier years in power. However, he parted ways with her after the Emergency and following differences of opinion with Sanjay Gandhi.