'Touch of comfort when darkness filled my soul'; MLA KK Rema pays tribute to V S Achuthanandan

MLA K K Rema, while paying her last respects to veteran leader V S Achuthanandan, fondly remembered his controversial visit to console the shattered family of TP Chandrashekaran, just days after he was brutally murdered in 2012.

The murder of KK Rema's husband and RMP leader TP Chandrasekharan created a huge stir in Kerala. Chandrasekharan, a party turncoat, was killed on May 4, 2012. Despite the objections from party leadership, VS visited the bereaved family on the day of the crucial Neyyattinkara bypolls.

Rema, who had remained stolid and unperturbed since the news of her husband’s murder, broke down in tears upon seeing the veteran leader at her house. The photo became iconic and entered into the annals of Kerala politics.

The visit sparked a rift within the party, and the relationship VS had with CPM was never like before.