Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee President VM Sudheeran on Friday resigned from his post, citing health reasons. Sudheeran, who made the announcement at the KPCC headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, said he would hand over his resignation letter to party president Sonia Gandhi later in the day.

He had recently been injured in a road accident in Kozhikode. “I am taking this decision based on the advice from doctors. It will take prolonged treatment and hence I was convinced that I cannot carry out my duty as KPCC president to its fullest sense,” said Sudheeran.

Sudheeran has been the KPCC president for more than three years. On February 10, 2014, he had replaced Ramesh Chennithala as the KPCC president. Earlier, he had held the post of Speaker and had also served as the state health minister.

Many senior party leaders expressed their surprise at the announcement. “It was a sudden decision, we did not expect that. He had health issues, I am not sure what was his feelings were. Further decisions will be taken by AICC [All India Congress Committee],” party veteran K Sudhakaran told The News Minute.