Kerala Congress (B)

Kerala Congress (B) is a registered-unrecognized political party in Kerala, formed by R. Balakrishna Pillai, a former minister of the government of Kerala. At present, the party has one MLA in the state Legislative Assembly, namely K. B. Ganesh Kumar, who has been representing the Pathanapuram constituency in Kollam District since 2001. The Kerala Congress (B) is a constituent of the Congress-led United Democratic Front(UDF). K B Ganesh Kumar served as a minister (portfolio in Forest, Sports and Cinema) in the present UDF government led by Oommen Chandy beginning May 18, 2011 until his resignation on April 01, 2013.

Balkrishna Pillai was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1971 and the State Assembly eight times since 1960. However, in the 2006 election he was defeated by a little-known opponent belonging to the Communist Party of India (Marxist). His son K. B. Ganesh Kumar, a Malayalam film and television actor, made his electoral debut in 2001, when he was elected from Pathanapuram. He went on to become Transport Minister in the A. K. Antony cabinet. He is currently the Acting Chairman of the Kerala Congress (B) and Minister for Forest, Sports, and Cinema.

The Party fielded two candidates in the 2011 election to the Kerala Assembly. N N Murali, a well known surgeon, is the party's candidate from Kottarakkara. Ganesh Kumar achieved a hat-trick win from the Pathanapuram constituency. But N N Muarli is defeated by his relative and LDF cantidate Ms Ayisha Potti and only Mr K.B.Ganesh Kumar could become MLA.

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