A 67-year-old farmer died, allegedly by suicide, on Tuesday at the LDF election committee office near the CPI office in Thalayazham, Vaikom. He was identified as Chellappan, alias Makkan, a native of Thalayazham.

In a video circulating on social media, purportedly recorded by him before his death, Chellappan accused CPI workers of harassment. He alleged that he had not received justice from the Home Department and that his attempts to meet Agriculture Minister P Prasad were unsuccessful.

In the video, he said he had studied at the Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bengaluru, in 2007 and later started a nursery and research activities in Kottayam. However, CPI workers repeatedly disrupted his farming activities, damaged his agricultural ventures and falsely accused him of doing so for insurance claims, he alleged, also claiming that the harassment continued over the years.

An FIR has been registered at the Vaikom Police Station under Section 194 (unnatural death) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Chellappan was found hanging from a pole of a temporary pandal set up as part of the election committee office, the FIR read.

Local farmers staged a protest at the site, which later saw participation from BJP and Congress workers. Police reached the spot and brought the situation under control. Responding to the incident, CPI Vaikom Mandalam president Baburaj said the party had no connection with the death and alleged that the issue was being politicised by the BJP and UDF. He also raised suspicion over the circumstances, alleging that it could be a murder carried out by BJP and UDF workers.

The incident comes at a time when the Vaikom constituency is preparing for the Kerala Assembly polls. The BJP has fielded K Ajith, a two-time former MLA (2006–2016) who previously represented the CPI before switching sides. The LDF is seeking to retain the constituency with CPI’s P Pradeep, while the UDF has fielded K Binimon. The seat is currently held by C K Asha (CPI), who won by a margin of over 29,000 votes in the 2021 elections.