Member of the State secretariat of CPI (M) and former MLA of Tiruppur South, K. Thangavel passed away here early on Sunday morning. He was admitted to a private hospital in Coimbatore 15 days ago for COVID-19 treatment. He was 69.
According to S. Muthukannan, Tiruppur district secretary of the party, the former MLA was a senior leader of the party in Tamil Nadu and a CITU leader. He was the Tiruppur south MLA from 2011 to 2016. He joined the hosiery industry as a worker at a very young age and had taken part in several protests for the rights and welfare of the workers as a member of the CITU. He joined the CPI (M) in 1974 and was the district secretary of the combined Coimbatore-Tiruppur district for nearly 11 years.
Coimbatore MP P.R. Natarajan said that Mr. Thangavel had worked for the rights of workers and to strengthen the trade union. He was always in touch with the cadre and was concerned about their welfare.
In his condolence message, V.S. Sundaram, Coimbatore district secretary of CPI, said Mr. Thangavel was first involved in the CITU banian workers union and went on to hold several posts in CPI (M) and CITU.
According to A. Sakthivel, chairman of Apparel Export Promotion Council, Mr. Thangavel had worked with the exporters to strengthen garment exports from Tiruppur. He was able to assess the problems and make a lucid presentation for discussion.
He is survived by his wife T. Shanthamani and two daughters. A condolence meeting was held at the party office at Tiruppur on Sunday.
