Kochi: Senior journalist and Congress leader P N Prasannakumar (74) died at a private hospital in Kochi on Saturday. He was undergoing treatment for a while.

A former president of the Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), he had been with Veekshanam, the mouthpiece of the Congress in Kerala, since it was launched as a periodical in 1974. Later, when Veekshanam started a daily, he was made a reporter in its Kochi bureau. He retired as the senior deputy editor of the newspaper. He was also elected as a councillor in Kochi Corporation twice. In Congress, he held the positions of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) executive member and treasurer of Ernakulam District Congress Committee (DCC).

Prasannakumar was twice elected president of the KUWJ. He also served as the treasurer and working committee member of the Indian Journalist Federation. He was also a member of the Majithia Wage Boards, which the central government constituted to fix the wages of journalists. Other major positions he held include syndicate member of Cochin University, member of Kerala Khadi and Village Industries Board, and member of the State Telecom Advisory Board.

He completed his college education at St Peter's College, Kolencherry and Maharaja's College, Ernakulam. He was active in the Congress' Kerala Students Union (KSU) during his student days. He was a district leader of the KSU and Youth Congress. He has served as the Kerala University Union's executive member. He was also the secretary of the Ernakulam Press Club for over a decade.

He is survived by his wife, Rajani, who retired as a faculty member from St Michael's College, Cherthala and his children, Aswin (Japan), Aswini (Canada) and Aishwarya (Singapore). The body will be kept at Ernakulam Press Club at 4 pm on Sunday for public homage. Cremation is scheduled to take place at 11 am on Monday at Pachalam crematorium.