K. K. Shailaja
K. K. Shailaja | |
|---|---|
| Chief Whip of CPI(M) in Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| Assumed office 20 May 2021 | |
| Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of Kerala | |
| In office 25 May 2016 – 19 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | V. S. Sivakumar |
| Succeeded by | Veena George |
| Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly | |
| Assumed office 24 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | E. P. Jayarajan |
| Constituency | Mattanur |
| In office 19 May 2016 – 02 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | K. P. Mohanan |
| Succeeded by | K. P. Mohanan |
| Constituency | Kuthuparamba |
| In office 2006–2011 | |
| Preceded by | A. D. Mustafa |
| Succeeded by | Sunny Joseph |
| Constituency | Peravoor |
| In office 1996–2001 | |
| Preceded by | Pinarayi Vijayan |
| Succeeded by | P. Jayarajan |
| Constituency | Kuthuparamba |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 20 November 1956 |
| Party | Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
| Parents |
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| Alma mater |
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| Awards | CEU Open Society Prize (2021) |
K. K. Shailaja (born 20 November 1956) is an Indian politician who served as the Minister for Health and Family Welfare of Kerala from 25 May 2016 to 19 May 2021. Since 2016, she has represented the Mattanur Assembly constituency in the Kerala Legislative Assembly.
Shailaja is a Central Committee member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Before entering active politics, she worked as a high school physics teacher. In June 2020, she was honoured by the United Nations for her efforts in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.
She was previously elected as the MLA from the Kuthuparamba constituency in 1996 and 2016, and Peravoor constituency in 2006. She served as the Minister of Health, Social Justice, and Woman and Child Development in the first Vijayan ministry (2016–21). In the 2021 Kerala Legislative Assembly election, Shailaja recorded the largest victory margin ever (60,963 votes) in the history of Kerala Legislative Assembly elections.