Thiruvananthapuram: CPI state secretary and a prominent communist leader of Kerala Kanam Rajendran passed away on Friday. He was 73.
Kanam was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Kochi where the end came following a cardiac arrest on Friday evening.
The CPI leader’s body will be brought to Thiruvananthapuram by air at 7 am on Saturday. It will be kept at the CPI office here for the public and party workers to pay their homage.
The mortal remains will be taken to Kottayam by road at 2 pm and the cremation will be held at 11 am on Sunday at his native place in Vazhoor.
Kanam Rajendran was born on November 10, 1950, at Kootikkal in Kottayam district. He entered politics through AIYF.
At the age of 23, he joined the AIYF and later became the organisation’s state secretary. Subsequently he became a member of the CPI state secretariat. He worked in the youth front at the national level under the leadership of A B Bardhan.
Kanam became a member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly from Vazhoor constituency in 1987. He later contested from Vazhoor twice but lost.
He became the CPI state secretary in 2015 and held the post for three consecutive terms. Kanam leaves behind his wife Vanaja and children Smita and Sandeep.
In his condolence message, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in the passing away of Kanam Rajendran the Left movement had lost one of the pillars of Communist unity.
“Kanam Rajendran made unparalleled contributions in strengthening the communist movement, strengthening the unity of the working class, protecting democratic movements and preserving secular values,” he said.
CPI general secretary A Raja said Kanam’s death was a big blow to the Left movement. “He worked for the downtrodden and contributed immensely towards strengthening the Left and democratic movement,” he said.
CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury expressed deep condolences on the death of Kanam Rajendran. "Kanam was a communist all his life and worked relentlessly for the downtrodden people. It is a loss to the communist movement and the Left movement in India,” he said.
