Former Kerala CM Achuthanandan In ICU For 2nd Day After Cardiac Arrest; CM Pinarayi Visits Hospital

Veteran CPI(M) leader and former Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, aged 101, remains under medical observation at the intensive care unit (ICU) of a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram for the second straight day. The senior politician, who has been bedridden since a stroke in 2019, was admitted on Monday after experiencing breathing difficulties.

Doctors monitoring the veteran leader have indicated that his condition is currently stable. "There is a slight improvement in his health condition," a hospital bulletin said, as per PTI.

CPI(M) state secretary MV Govindan, who visited the hospital, told reporters that a team of cardiologists is attending to Achuthanandan. "Doctors have said his condition is stable for now," Govindan stated, as reported by IANS.

Before noon, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan also met VS Achuthanandan at the hospital and left without addressing the media.

Who Is VS Achuthanandan?

A towering figure in Kerala’s political landscape, Achuthanandan is the last surviving founding member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), which was formed in 1964 following a historic split in the undivided Communist Party. He served as the Chief Minister of Kerala from 2006 to 2011 and had a long legislative career, having been elected MLA seven times out of ten contests, reported PTI.

After the 2016 elections, he was appointed Chairman of the Administrative Reforms Committee with Cabinet rank. However, citing deteriorating health, he stepped down from the post in January 2021 and has remained largely out of public life since.

Though revered for his steadfast commitment to leftist principles, Achuthanandan’s political journey was also marked by internal strife within the CPI(M), especially with current Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Their strained relationship reached a peak during Achuthanandan’s tenure as Chief Minister from 2006 to 2011.

His latest hospitalisation comes at a sensitive time for the party, especially in the wake of the CPI(M)'s recent defeat in the Nilambur Assembly by-election.

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