Dijo Kappan, Veteran Consumer Rights Activist, Passes Away at 68 in Kerala

Veteran social activist and consumer rights advocate Dijo Kappan passed away at the age of 68 in Pala, Kottayam, on Friday (May 1, 2026). He was undergoing treatment at a private hospital after sustaining injuries in a car accident in Thiruvananthapuram in October last year.

A member of the Edamattam Kappil family of Pala, Kappan was active in student politics during his early years as a leader of the Kerala Student Congress, the campus wing of the Kerala Congress.

Over the years, he became widely known as a strong voice for consumer rights and anti-corruption activism in Kerala. In 1988, he founded the Centre for Consumer Education, an organisation dedicated to protecting the rights of consumers and farmers.

Through the centre, Kappan led several public interest legal battles, including cases related to electricity tariff hikes, road tax revisions, waste management issues in Kochi, and the regulation of roadside advertisement boards. He was also actively involved in advocating for smoother insurance claim processes for road accident victims.

His long-standing activism and legal interventions made him a prominent figure in consumer rights movements in the state.