Antony Raju is an Indian politician and was in office as Minister for Road Transport, Motor Vehicles, Water Transport till 24 December 2023,[2][3] Government of Kerala. He is the leader of Janadhipathya Kerala Congress. He was elected to the Kerala legislative assembly from Thiruvananthapuram Constituency of Kerala in 2021. Earlier he was the MLA of Thiruvananthapuram West Constituency from 1996 to 2001.
Antony Raju | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| Assumed office 20 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | V. S. Sivakumar |
| Constituency | Thiruvananthapuram |
| Minister for Road Transport, Motor Vehicles, Water Transport, Government of Kerala | |
| In office 2 May 2021 – 24 December 2023 | |
| Preceded by | A. K. Saseendran |
| Constituency | Thiruvananthapuram |
| Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| In office 20 May 1996 – 10 May 2001 | |
| Preceded by | M. M. Hassan |
| Succeeded by | M. V. Raghavan |
| Constituency | Thiruvananthapuram West |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 18 December 1954 Trivandrum |
| Political party | Janadhipathya Kerala Congress[1] |
| Residence(s) | Nanthencode, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala |
| Website | www.antonyraju.in |
Early life and education
editRaju was born on 18 November 1954 in Poonthura, Trivandrum to S Alphonse and T Lourdamma in a poor family from the fisher community.[4] He had his early education at the St. Thomas School Poonthura, Trivandrum, and completed his schooling at the Rajagiri School, Kalamassery, Ernakulam.[5] Raju was the unit president of Kerala Students' Congress (KSC), the students' wing of Kerala Congress, in St Xavier's College, Thumba, and Mar Ivanios College, Thiruvananthapuram. After graduating in Law from the Kerala Law Academy Law College, he enrolled as an advocate in 1982.[4] He completed his pre-degree from St. Xavier's College, Thumba, Thiruvananthapuram.
Political career
edit
In 1996, Antony Raju was KC(J) candidate and contested for LDF. It was Antony's first political victory in Assembly Election from Trivandrum West Constituency. However, in the 2016 elections he contested as Janadhipathya Kerala Congress candidate but lost to VS Sivakumar. But in the 2021 elections, he defeated VS Sivakumar by more than 8000 votes.The coastal region has been Raju's support base. He contested a poll for the first time from Shanghumugham division to the erstwhile district council. Shanghumugham is part of the Thiruvananthapuram Assembly constituency.
His first attempt to reach the Assembly went in vain as he lost to M M Hassan of the Congress in Thiruvananthapuram West in 1991. Raju exacted revenge the next time by defeating Hassan. However, he lost again in 2001, this time to M V Raghavan.
He was not fielded in the next two Assembly polls due to controversies over his legal career. In 2016, Raju of the Janadhipathya Kerala Congress lost to V S Sivakumar, but bounced back this time by defeating the same Congress leader.
In November 2024, in a legal setback, supreme court allowed criminal proceedings against Raju in the tampering evidence case, dating back to the early 1990s.[6]
References
edit- ^ "Kerala Congress (M) rebels form new party, may join LDF". The Indian Express. 10 March 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
- ^ "The Kerala Governor allots the Business of the Government among the following Ministers". Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ "Notifications - Government of Kerala, India". kerala.gov.in. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
- ^ a b "Antony Raju: From coast to cabinet". onmanorama.com. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- ^ "LDF candidate Antony Raju begins election campaign". www.uniindia.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017.
- ^ "Supreme Court Restores Criminal Proceedings Against Kerala MLA Antony Raju In Evidence Tampering Case, Directs To Conclude Trial In 1 Yr". www.livelaw.in. 20 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
External links
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