Kerala witnessed an extraordinary farewell on Tuesday and Wednesday, as thousands of mourners lined the roads to pay their final respects to Communist icon V.S. Achuthanandan, whose mortal remains were being taken from the state capital to his hometown Alappuzha.
The flower adorned&nbsp;state owned KSRTC bus, carrying the body of the 101 year old former Chief Minister, left&nbsp;Thiruvananthapuram at 2 p.m. on Tuesday. However, what would typically be a four hour journey stretched over 21 hours, as people flooded highways and villages, forcing the procession to move at a crawl.
By 11 a.m. on Wednesday, the hearse had only covered 145 km, still 7 km away from his residence in Alappuzha, where locals had formed a 2 km long queue since early morning, undeterred by heavy rains and overnight darkness.
CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan, visibly exhausted, acknowledged the overwhelming public turnout. &ldquo;The schedule has completely changed. Lakhs have come out. We&rsquo;re now looking to shorten the public viewing to ensure cremation by evening,&rdquo; he said.
VS&rsquo;s house, purchased 58 years ago, was his chosen final stop in life. After reaching Alappuzha, his body will be placed at three locations: his residence, the CPI(M) district committee office where he once served as secretary at age 31, and a specially erected pandal near the seashore, built to accommodate over 3,000 people.
The final rites are scheduled at Veliyachudukadu, where the cremation pyre will be lit after 5 p.m.
VS, who had stepped away from public life in 2020, was clearly still held in deep reverence. His passing on Monday at 3:20 p.m. led to a statewide holiday the next day, while Alappuzha district has observed a local holiday on Wednesday.
Senior CPI(M) leaders including M.A. Baby, Prakash Karat, Brinda Karat, and others were among those who paid tribute.
Despite the years away from politics, the overwhelming turnout reaffirms Achuthanandan's enduring bond with the people of Kerala.

Massive crowd; V.S. Achuthanandan’s Last Journey

VS’s final journey to Alappuzha stretches past 21 hours as Lakhs gather in Kerala

Massive crowd; V.S. Achuthanandan’s Last Journey

VS’s final journey to Alappuzha stretches past 21 hours as Lakhs gather in Kerala

July 23, 2025 | 13:12 IST