Rahul Mamkootathil

Rahul B, better known as Rahul Mamkootathil is an Indian politician and businessman from Kerala, who is serving as the current Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly from the Palakkad constituency. He is a member of the Indian National Congress.^[2][3]

Rahul Mamkootathil
Mamkootathil in March 2023
Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 December 2024
Preceded by	Shafi Parambil
Constituency	Palakkad
Personal details
Born	Rahul B. R.[1]
Political party	Indian National Congress
Alma mater	St. Stephen's College, Delhi
Occupation	Politician businessman

Early life and education

Rahul studied at Thapovan Public School in Adoor and at St. John's School in Pandalam. He did his B.A. degree in History from the Catholicate College, Pathanamthitta. He then completed his postgraduate degrees in English from IGNOU and in History from St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at MGU, Kottayam.^[4]

Political career

Rahul began his political career in 2006 as a member of the Kerala Students Union (KSU) while pursuing his undergraduate studies at Catholicate College, Pathanamthitta. In 2007, he was elected president of KSU's Adoor constituency and also assumed the role of president for the Indian Youth Congress in the Peringanadu mandalam committee. Over the years, he held several leadership positions, including university counselor, Pathanamthitta district president of KSU, and national secretary of the National Students' Union of India (NSUI). He also served as KSU state general secretary, Youth Congress state general secretary, and Youth Congress state secretary, in addition to being a member of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). In 2023, Rahul was elected as the state president of the Indian Youth Congress, Kerala.^[4]

In the November 2024 by-election to the Palakkad constituency, Rahul, representing the Indian National Congress (INC) was elected as the Member to the Kerala Legislative Assembly. He won by a margin of 18,840 votes over the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate.^[5][6][7][8]

Personal life

In addition to his political career, Rahul is also engaged in various business ventures. He owns a men's beauty parlour and holds partnerships in a medical shop and a children's clothing store. He also runs a Milma agency.^[1]

Controversies

On 21 August 2025, Kerala Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil resigned as president of the state Youth Congress after Malayalam actor Rini Ann George alleged that a "young politician" had sent her obscene messages and invited her to a hotel; although she did not name him, news coverage connected the allegation to Mamkootathil, who denied wrongdoing and remained MLA for Palakkad.^[9] In subsequent coverage, transgender activist Avanthika Vishnu alleged that Mamkootathil shared "rape fantasies" with her and told her he "wanted to rape" her.^[10][11] Media also reported the circulation of an audio clip purported to feature him urging a woman to terminate a pregnancy; he disputed its authenticity, and Kochi Police said they were seeking legal opinion on a complaint based on the clip.^[12][13] The Congress announced an internal inquiry but, amid calls from rivals for his ouster, did not ask him to vacate his Assembly seat.^[14][15]