CPIM Veteran G. Sudhakaran Quits Party, to Run Independently

In a significant development ahead of Kerala's assembly elections, veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader and former minister G. Sudhakaran announced on Thursday his decision to sever ties with the party after a 60-year association and contest as an independent candidate from the Ambalapuzha constituency in Alappuzha district. The move, which Sudhakaran framed as a stand against internal party discord, has sparked protests from CPIM workers and prompted heightened security measures around his residence.

Sudhakaran, a four-time MLA who served as a minister in the V.S. Achuthanandan cabinet from 2006 to 2011 and later in the Pinarayi Vijayan administration until 2021, cited personal attacks by some party cadres as a key reason for his departure. Speaking at a press conference in Alappuzha, the 75-year-old leader alleged that he faced character assassination on social media, including insults directed at his family and the memory of his brother, G. Bhuvaneswaran, who was killed in 1977 during political violence linked to the Congress-led student wing. He declined to renew his party membership three weeks prior, despite visits from members urging him to do so.