Hyderabad: Former Kerala Chief Minister and senior CPI(M) leader V.S. Achuthanandan passed away on Monday at the age of 101. He had been under treatment for cardiac-related complications since June 23, when he was admitted to hospital with chest pain.
Achuthanandan, widely regarded as one of the last living links to India’s early communist movement, breathed his last while undergoing treatment. A veteran of the freedom struggle and a prominent voice for workers’ rights, he was known for his sharp oratory and lifelong commitment to leftist ideology.
Born on October 20, 1923, in Punnapra, Alappuzha district, Achuthanandan was drawn to Marxist thought at an early age. Influenced by speeches of VK Karunakaran, he entered political activism during the independence movement. In 1964, he was among the 32 leaders who broke away from the CPI to form the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
He was elected to the Kerala Legislative Assembly from Ambalappuzha in 1967. Achuthanandan later married K. Vasumathi, a fellow activist from the movement.