By IANS,
New Delhi : New Minister of State for Power K.C. Venugopal is a first-time MP but a former Kerala minister and three-time lawmaker in the state assembly.
Elected to the Lok Sabha from the Alappuzha constituency, Venugopal, 47, belongs to the influential Nair community.
His appointment is viewed as a restoration of representation to the Nairs following the resignation of then minister of state for external affairs Shashi Tharoor last year.
A lawyer by profession, Venugopal had been the state president of the Youth Congress and headed the Kerala Students Union.
A legislator from the Alappuzha constituency since 1996, Venugopal resigned from the post to contest the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. He was the minister of tourism in the state during 2004-2006.
He is married to Asha, a doctor, and has two children – Gokul and Parvati.