Veteran Communist leader, former Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan turns 101

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 20 (ANI): Veteran communist leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala VS Achuthanandan turned 101 on Friday.
Several leaders including Kerala Governor Arif Muhammad Khan and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan extended their birthday wishes to the CPI (M) leader.
"Best wishes to the former Chief Minister and esteemed leader Shri V. S. Achuthanandan on his 101st birthday. May he be blessed with good health and joy on this special day and in the times to come," Governor Arif Muhammad Khan said in his birthday wishes.
"Birthday greetings to dear Comrade VS Achuthanandan," Chief Minister Vijayan said in a post on X.
Goa governor PS Sreedharan Pillai, Kerala Ministers V Sivankutty, KN Balagopal and GR Anil, former Politburo member of the CPIM S Ramachandran Pillai and CPI Kerala Secretary Binoy Viswam visited Achuthanandan's house here and conveyed their greetings.
Achuthanandan, a senior leader of CPI(M) in India, entered politics through trade union activities. He was a member of the Kerala Assembly seven times and the 11th Chief Minister of Kerala.
He was the opposition leader three times, served as CPIM party secretary three times, and was a CPI (M) political bureau member for long periods.
Achuthanandan was keen on upholding communist principles while holding various positions as Chief Minister, legislature, or opposition leader. He started a mission to remove land encroachments in Munnar in the Idukki district, even though he was criticised by his party when he was the chief minister. The common-party workers had offered him support for his actions. (ANI)