AMN / HYDERABAD
Veteran Communist Party of India (CPI) leader and former General Secretary, Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy, passed away on Friday night at a private hospital in Hyderabad. He was 83.
Party sources confirmed that he succumbed to age-related ailments. Reddy, a two-time Member of Parliament from the Nalgonda constituency, served as the CPI’s General Secretary from 2012 to 2019. His passing marks the end of a long and distinguished political career dedicated to social justice and the struggles of the working class.
Born on March 25, 1942, Comrade Reddy’s political journey began in his student days, where he was known for leading agitations for basic amenities. His dedication to people’s movements earned him a reputation as a powerful orator and a leader who connected with the masses. He was a driving force behind the historic struggle for voting rights for youth at the age of 18.
Tributes poured in from across the political spectrum following the news of his demise. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, in a condolence message, described him as a “towering leader” who played a key role in Left politics at the national level. Telangana Chief Minister’s office has confirmed that Comrade Reddy’s last rites will be performed with state honors.
Former Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and other senior leaders also expressed their grief, highlighting Reddy’s unwavering commitment to his ideology and his contributions to the welfare of the oppressed.
As per his wishes, Comrade Reddy’s body will be donated to the Gandhi Medical College for medical research, and his eyes will be donated to the LV Prasad Eye Hospital.
His mortal remains will be kept at the CPI Telangana State Council office, Makhdoom Bhawan, from 10:00 AM on Sunday for the public to pay their last respects before the final rites.
The Communist Party of India bows its red flag in homage to Comrade Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy (25 March 1942 – 22 August, 2025), a distinguished leader of the Indian Left who devoted his entire life to the cause of workers, peasants, students, youth and the oppressed.
From his formative years as a school student in Kurnool, where he led his classmates in a strike for blackboards and chalk, to his days as Students’ Union General Secretary at Osmania University Law College, Comrade Reddy’s instinct for mobilisation and leadership was evident early. Twice elected as General Secretary of the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) in the late 1960s, he led historic 62-day nationwide strikes demanding hostels, scholarships and welfare measures, and faced repeated imprisonment for his role in student struggles. As President of the All India Youth Federation (AIYF) in 1972, he spearheaded the campaign that won voting rights for youth at the age of 18, through the 61st Constitutional Amendment—leaving an indelible mark on India’s democratic process.
Twice elected to the Lok Sabha from Nalgonda (1998 & 2004), he served with distinction as Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour. His pioneering recommendations on social security for unorganised workers and gratuity rights for private school teachers became the basis of important legislations. His interventions in Parliament—on fluoride contamination in Nalgonda, agrarian distress, black money, and the 2G scam—won him respect across party lines as a voice of integrity and social conscience. On the ground, he led major people’s agitations, including the militant electricity price struggle in Andhra Pradesh, where he narrowly escaped police bullets. This agitation became a landmark in resisting World Bank-imposed policies. As CPI Andhra Pradesh State Secretary (1997–2005) and later as Deputy General Secretary (2008), he expanded the reach of the Left among youth, particularly in universities, by linking class and caste struggles in new ways.
As General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (2012–2019), Comrade Reddy re-energised the organisation, emphasising cadre education, mass-organisation building, and united-Left action against communalism and authoritarianism. Under his stewardship, the Party recorded its most significant growth in membership and in youth and women’s wings since the 1990s.
Internationally, Comrade Reddy represented the CPI and India with distinction. He participated in more than 40 international delegations, from student congresses in the USSR and Mongolia to fraternal engagements in the USA, Italy, Vietnam, Japan and elsewhere. He also addressed the United Nations General Assembly, projecting the vision of India’s working people to the world. These global exchanges deepened CPI’s international solidarity and sharpened its perspectives at home.
A commanding orator in Telugu, Hindi and English, as well as a prolific writer of essays, pamphlets and books, Comrade Reddy combined ideological clarity with accessibility, making Marxism understandable to new generations. His speeches and writings continue to inspire organisers and campaigners across India.
Comrade Suravaram Sudhakar Reddy exemplified the journey “from the classroom to the comradeship of the world.” His entire life was a testament to principled leadership rooted in people’s struggles, and he will be remembered as one of the outstanding leaders of the Indian Left.