The Member of Legislative Assembly from Chavara constituency, N Vijayan Pillai, died on Sunday at a private hospital in Kochi. He was 65.
He was under treatment for a terminal illness for the past two months. The last rites would be held at his home near Kollam.
Vijayan Pillai started his political career as a Panchayat Member in 1979, and continued so for 20 years. In 2000, he became a member of District Panchayat.
Pillai, who is the son of veteran Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader Narayanan Pillai, had started his career from the same party. He was considered close to RSP leader Baby John. However, in 2000, after a fallout in the party Pillai moved to Congress and was with K Karunakaran group.
He left the Congress over differences with then KPCC president V M Sudheeran on the party's liquor policy and moved to CPM.
In the 2016 Assembly polls, Pillai defeated legislator and son of John, Shibhu Baby John, by 6,189 votes.
He is survived by wife Suma and children Sujeeth, Sreejith and Srilakshmi.
