Kerala Congress president K Sudhakaran announced the death of Congress veteran and former chief minister Oommen Chandy on Tuesday, He was 79. “The tale of the king who triumphed over the world with the power of 'love' finds its poignant end. Today, I am deeply saddened by the loss of a legend, @Oommen_Chandy. He touched the lives of countless individuals, and his legacy will forever resonate within our souls. RIP!” Sudhakaran tweeted.
Chandy, who served in as chief minister of Kerala two times, died in Bengaluru in the early hours of Tuesday, his family declared. In a Facebook post, the former Kerala chief minister's son, Chandy Oommen, announced his father's passing.
Oommen wrote, "Appa has passed away," without providing additional details on his Facebook page.
Chandy, who had not been saving great for a long while, had been remaining in Bengaluru for treatment at a health facility.
“Extremely sad to bid farewell to our most beloved leader and former CM Shri. Oommen Chandy. One of the most popular and dynamic leaders of Kerala, Chandy sir was loved across generations and sections of the population. The Congress family will miss his leadership and energy,” the Congress Kerala tweeted.
Meanwhile, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan expressed deep grief over the death of Chandy.
"We were elected to the Legislative Assembly in the same year. It was at the same stage that we came to the political fore through student life. We led public life at the same time and it is extremely difficult to bid him farewell. Oommen Chandy was a capable administrator and a person who was closely involved in people's lives.," says Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Who was Oommen Chandy?
The veteran Congress leader started his stretch as a legislator by winning in the 1970 state assembly elections at 27 years old. He later proceeded to win 11 back to back polls from that point forward. Oommen Chandy served as the Kerala chief minister two times - from 2004-06 and 2011-16.
In the past five decades, Chandy has only represented his home constituency, Puthuppally.
In 2022, he turned into the longest-serving individual from the state assembly by addressing Puthupally, in the House for 18,728 days. He beat the record set by the late KM Mani, who was the leader of the Kerala Congress (M). Throughout his political career, Chandy has held the position of Leader of Opposition in the state assembly four times and served as minister in various cabinets four times.
Here's how people reacted on Chandy's death:
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