Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala – V.S. Achuthanandan, a towering figure in Kerala politics and one of the last surviving founding members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)), passed away on Monday at the age of 101. The former Kerala Chief Minister had been undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram since suffering a cardiac arrest on June 23.
Earlier on Monday, his health remained critical, prompting visits from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal, and other senior CPI(M) leaders, including the state secretary, who went to the hospital to see him.
Achuthanandan had largely withdrawn from public life since suffering a stroke in October 2019.
Who Was V.S. Achuthanandan?
Born on October 20, 1923, in Punnapra, Alappuzha district, Vellikakath Sankaran Achuthanandan served as the Chief Minister of Kerala from 2006 to 2011. A relentless advocate for social justice and workers’ rights throughout his life, he was a pivotal figure in the formation of the CPI(M) in 1964, following the vertical split within the undivided Communist Party.
Achuthanandan’s illustrious political career saw him serve as a seven-time MLA, contesting a total of ten elections and losing only three. His first electoral foray in the Ambalapuzha assembly constituency in his native Alappuzha was among his losses.
He held the crucial position of CPI(M)’s state secretary for 12 years, from 1980 to 1992, a period during which the organization significantly strengthened its roots, becoming a bastion for the working classes and the marginalized.
The widespread support for Achuthanandan’s leadership was evident in the 2011 assembly elections, where the Left Democratic Front (LDF) secured 68 of the state’s 140 seats, just two short of a majority, although the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) came to power under Oommen Chandy.
Even at the age of 93, Achuthanandan actively campaigned for the LDF in the 2016 polls, successfully winning from the Malampuzha constituency. However, citing health concerns, the party subsequently handed over the leadership baton to Pinarayi Vijayan.