A comrade who stood for plantation workers

THE sudden demise of Peermade MLA and CPI leader Vazhoor Soman has left a void in Idukki's plantation belt as it has lost one of its most steadfast voices.

- NEJMA SULAIMAN @Idukki

THE sudden demise of Peermade MLA and CPI leader Vazhoor Soman has left a void in Idukki's plantation belt as it has lost one of its most steadfast voices. For the workers of the high ranges, his absence is not just political but deeply personal, for he was a leader who shared their struggles and lived among them with simplicity and sincerity.

Born in 1953 at Vazhoor in Kottayam, Soman entered public life through the student and youth movements of the CPI. By the 1970s, he had made Peermade his base, pioneering the work of the AITUC in the region. He was instrumental in forming the High Range Estate Labour Union (HEL Union) under AITUC, which brought together plantation workers and gave them a strong collective voice.

His early years were marked by struggle and sacrifice. In 1979, during a labour dispute, he was brutally assaulted by then SI V.S. Raghavan at the Vandiperiyar police station. Even during this turbulent period, he remained committed to people's causes, standing alongside CPI leaders in historic struggles such as the Mullaperiyar agitation.