Daijiworld Media Network - Thiruvananthapuram
Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 21: Veteran communist leader and former Kerala chief minister V S Achuthanandan passed away at a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday, July 21. He was 101.
Achuthanandan breathed his last at 3.20 pm. He had been admitted on June 23 following a heart attack and remained in the intensive care unit since, under critical medical support.
The mortal remains will be taken to his native Alappuzha on Tuesday. The funeral will be held on Wednesday.
Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, state secretary M V Govindan and several other senior leaders visited the hospital earlier in the day.
Out of active politics since 2019, VS, as he was fondly known, remained one of the tallest figures in Kerala's political history. His political career spanned over seven decades, marked by consistent public engagement and ideological commitment. He served as the state’s 11th chief minister from 2006 to 2011, and had also led the opposition in the assembly thrice.
Achuthanandan was inducted into the CPM Politburo in 1985, but stepped down in 2009 following internal rifts and policy disagreements. His electoral debut was unsuccessful in Ambalappuzha in 1965, but he soon became one of the most popular faces of the party. He went on to represent Ambalappuzha, Mararikulam and Malampuzha constituencies in the state assembly until his retirement in 2016.
Born in 1923 in Punnapra, Alappuzha—an epicentre of Kerala's early communist movements—Achuthanandan’s political activism was deeply shaped by the region’s legacy. A turning point came in 1970 with the Alappuzha Declaration, through which he championed the implementation of land reforms introduced by the EMS Namboodiripad-led government.
His term as chief minister saw several landmark initiatives: a crackdown on illegal encroachments in Munnar, land acquisition for the Vallarpadam container terminal, the establishment of Kollam Technopark and Cherthala Infopark, approval for Kannur airport, and efforts to reclaim paddy fields. He also led campaigns against the illegal lottery mafia and various forms of corruption.
Achuthanandan is survived by his family, and his passing marks the end of an era in Kerala’s left politics.