M. A. Kuttappan

Dr. M. A. Kuttappan
Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes
In office May 26, 2001 – August 29, 2004
Preceded by	K. Radhakrishnan
Succeeded by	A.P. Anil Kumar
Member of the Legislative Assembly
In office 1980–1982
Constituency	Wandoor constituency
In office 1987–1991
Constituency	Chelakkara constituency
In office 1996–2001
Constituency	Njarakkal constituency
In office 2001–2006
Constituency	Njarakkal constituency
Personal details
Born	(1947-04-12)April 12, 1947 Mallappally, Pathanamthitta district, Kerala
Died	20 June 2023(2023-06-20) (aged 76) Kochi, Eranakulam district, Kerala
Political party	Indian National Congress
Spouse	Beeby John
Children	2
As of August 9, 2023 Source: stateofkerala

M. A. Kuttappan (1947-2023) was an Indian National Congress politician from Kerala, India. Elected as Member of the Legislative Assembly four times, he also served as the Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes in the A K Antony government from 2001 to 2004 and as the Chief Whip of the Congress in the 10th Kerala Assembly.

Biography

Kuttappan was born on April 12, 1947 to Ayyappan and Kalyani in a Dalit family in Valakkuzhy, Mallappalli Taluk in Pathanamthitta District of Kerala. He received his MBBS from Kottayam Medical College in 1977 and his MS from Thiruvananthapuram Medical College in 1979.

Before joining politics, he served as a tutor in pediatric surgery from 1973 to 1975 in Alappuzha Medical College, for five years from 1975 to 1980 as an assistant surgeon in the Kerala health services department and four years as a medical officer in the Cochin Port Trust Hospital, from 1983 to 1987.

He has also served as a member of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, a member of the Southern Railway Recruitment Board, a member of the Calicut University Senate and a member of the KPCC Executive Committee.

Personal life and death

Kuttappan and his wife Beeby John have 2 sons. After leaving Pathanamthitta, he lived with his family in Saket, Nivya Nagar, Perandur in Ernakulam district. He died on June 20, 2023, in a private hospital in Kochi.

Political career

Kuttappan got attracted to mainstream politics and became active in organizational activities while serving as house surgeon at Ernakulam General Hospital from Kottayam Medical College. He then resigned from the job to pursue full-time political activity. Kuttappan joined the Indian National Congress in 1978 through the Congress Reform Committee.

In 1980, Kuttappan was first elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly from Vandur constituency. He was then elected as MLA from Chelakara in 1987 and from Njarakkal in 1996 and 2001. From May 2001 to August 2004, he served as the Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes in the A K Antony cabinet.

Kuttappan was one of the members of A group in Congress politics. The fight between the A and I groups intensified and Oommen Chandy resigned from Karunakaran's cabinet because Kuttappan was denied Rajya Sabha seat on behalf of the group politics. Kuttappan, who was in the cabinet when Antony became the chief minister, lost his ministerial post when Oommen Chandy became the chief minister. It is believed that he lost his candidature in Njarakkal due to his later joining the I group.

In 2013, he suffered a stroke during the MA John memorial speech at Kuryanadu and following that he retired from political life due to ill health. Although he almost recovered his health through treatment, he did not enterd active politics after that.