He was born on 27 October 1908 the son of Alibag lawyer Kashinath Vaman Kunte (1880–1951) and his first wife.
His younger brother, Prabhakar Kashinath Kunte was also a state legislator, minister, politician and public servant.
He resigned the Speakership in protest against the Congress-run Central Government's decision not to create a Marathi-speaking state of Maharashtra in 1956, which however did come to fruition in 1960.
He later left the Congress Party and contested the 1967 elections for the 4th Lok Sabha from the Kolaba constituency (now defunct; most parts now in the Raigad Lok Sabha constituency) and was elected as an Independent candidate with the support of the Peasants and Workers Party of India (PWP).
He was an advocate of Opposition unity and participated in the formation of the Bharatiya Kranti Dal and served as the party's General Secretary.
He actively canvassed for the newly formed Janata Party in the 1977 but refused the nomination for a parliamentary seat.
He was a founder of the Janata Shikshan Mandal which operates several educational institutions in and near Alibag, including JSM College.