Kodiyeri Balakrishnan dies: veteran Left leader was diagnosed with cancer; CPI(M) pays homage

Veteran politician Kodiyeri Balakrishnan died on 1 October 2022 at a hospital in Tamil Nadu's Chennai. The senior CPI(M) leader had been diagnosed with cancer, and was admitted to Apollo Hospital. He was 69 years old.

Balakrishnan was a multiple-time MLA, and had served as Kerala's Home and Tourism Minister in VS Achuthanandan's Cabinet between 2006 and 2011. He was a polit bureau member of the CPI(M), and had also served as the party's state secretary between 2015 and 2022.

He had relinquished the party state secretary post in August 2022 due to ill health.

CPI(M) said that it was "dipping the red flag in homage" to the late leader. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan postponed his Europe trip on 1 October, in view of Balakrishnan's failing health.

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