Senior Congress leader and Opposition UDF candidate from Nilambur V V Prakash died of a heart attack this morning, party sources said.
The 56-year-old leader was also Malappuram District Congress Committee president. He had undergone angioplasty a few months back.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and other leaders including from rival parties extended their condolences to the family.
Gandhi tweeted, "The untimely demise of Malappuram DCC President & UDF Nilambur candidate V V Prakash Ji is extremely tragic. He will be remembered as an honest & hardworking member of the Congress, always ready to offer help to the people. My heartfelt condolences to his family."
The untimely demise of Malappuram DCC President & UDF Nilambur candidate V V Prakash Ji is extremely tragic.
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 29, 2021
He will be remembered as an honest & hardworking member of the Congress, always ready to offer help to the people.
My heartfelt condolences to his family. pic.twitter.com/LugPBIROKP
District Congress Committee sources said Prakash was admitted to a private hospital in Edakkara in the early hours of Thursday after he complained of heart-related discomfort, but was shifted to a facility in Manjeri as his condition worsened. According to reports, he suffered a cardiac arrest at around 3:30 am.
He passed away around 5 am, they said. Offering his condolences Thiruvananthapuram MP and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said "Shocked to learn of the sudden & untimely demise of @INCKerala Assembly candidate in Nilambur, VV Prakash, whom I campaigned for personally & whose victory we had all been anticipating on May 2. A dedicated social & political worker, he was president of the DCC. OmShanti."
Shocked to learn of the sudden & untimely demise of @INCKerala Assembly candidate in Nilambur, VV Prakash, whom I campaigned for personally & whose victory we had all been anticipating on May 2. A dedicated social & political worker, he was president of the DCC. OmShanti pic.twitter.com/jxgZC0wEOv
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) April 29, 2021
The Congress party was hoping to wrest the Nilambur seat from the ruling LDF alliance. The CPI(M) had fielded incumbent MLA P V Anwar.
Prakash often acted as the bridge between the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), second biggest ally to the Congress-led UDF, and the Congress party whenever a friction arose between both parties. Malappuram, where he stood from is an IUML stronghold.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, IUML leader P K Kunhalikutty condoled the Congress leader's demise. "I have lost my brother. He was certian of winning Nilambur and we are all completely devastated by this tragic news," Ramesh Chennithala reportedly stated. The senior Congress leader's last rites are expected to be held later in the day on Thursday, and all of the party's senior leaders are likely to be in attendance.
The keenly fought state assembly polls were held on April 6 and the counting of votes is scheduled for May 2.