On one occasion, Gangadharan was not given permission to appear for intermediate examinations because he wore khadi, viewed as an anti-British statement.
After leaving college in 1947 Gangadharan formed the Kerala Socialist Party (KSP) under the leadership of Mathai Manjooran, whom he considered as his mentor and guide.
Assaulted by police and jailed himself, he was released from prison a day before India became independent.
[4] In 1952, he married Vijayalakshmi, granddaughter of Chief Secretary of Cochin State Komattil Achutha Menon.
Considering the caste-communal divide prevalent in society in those days, Gangadharan saw their inter-caste marriage as a revolutionary move.