Former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy passes away at 80

New Delhi : Shri Oommen Chandy, a Congress veteran and former Chief Minister of Kerala, breathed his last in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The news of his demise was shared by his son, Chandy Oommen, through a heartfelt Facebook post at 4:30 am. The 80-year-old statesman had been battling health issues since 2019 and had received medical treatment at renowned institutions such as Berlin's Charite Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram's NIMS Medicity, and Bengaluru's Health Care Global Enterprises over the past year.

The passing of Oommen Chandy has deeply saddened the nation. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan expressed his condolences and said, "It is extremely difficult to bid him farewell." Vijayan recalled their shared journey in politics, as both leaders were elected to the Legislative Assembly in the same year and emerged through student activism. 

Oommen Chandy's political career spanned for five decades, during which he amassed significant achievements. In 2022, he became the longest-serving member of the Kerala Assembly, having represented his home constituency of Puthupally for a remarkable 18,728 days. Chandy entered the Kerala Assembly at the young age of 27 and achieved an extraordinary feat by winning 11 consecutive elections. He also held the position of Chief Minister of Kerala for two terms, serving from 2004 to 2006 and from 2011 to 2016.