M. Kannappan

M. Kannappan Biography

M. Kannappan is an Indian politician, former parliamentarian and union minister from the state of Tamil Nadu. He served as the union minister for Non-conventional energy sources in A. B. Vajpayee's NDA cabinet during the time period, 1999-2004. As a member of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, he has been elected as the MLA of Tamil Nadu twice in 1967 and 1972, for two consecutive terms, and in 1989 and 2006. He served as the state minister for Hindu religious endowment boards and dairy development between 1969 and 1975, and also minister for Highways, Housing and Ports in 1989 and Transport minister in M. Karunanidhi's government.

M. Kannappan hails from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. As a member of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam regional party, he entered active politics in the late 1960s, and got elected to state assembly for the first time in 1967. After that he has been elected three more times to state assembly, thus serving as 4-term legislator. He has also served as a parliamentarian and union minister once when his political party formed alliance with A. B. Vajpayee in 1999, and he was offered a cabinet position.

Known to be a veteran leader of DMK, he has been instrumental in reviving the DMK in western Tamil Nadu after it lost elections in the 1980s. During Emergency Period, for his bold stand in the public platforms, he earned the name, "Karotti kannappan". Following indifferences with Karunanidhi, he left DMK in 1994, and became a member of Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. He lost 1996 state assembly elections as MDMK candidate, but won it in 2006. He reconciled with Karunanidhi two years later. Kannappan's grandson Nandha is a popular actor who plays lead and supporting roles in Tamil movies.

Published: August 24, 2019

Updated: August 24, 2019