‘End of an era, mass leader who lived among people’: Kerala politicians across party lines pay homage to Congress doyen Oommen Chandy

Vijayan recalled that he and Chandy became MLAs for the first time on the same day in 1970. “In the later years, when I was engaged in political activities outside the Assembly, Chandy continued as a legislator. While many Congress leaders like K Karunakaran and A K Antony had gone to the Parliament, Chandy remained in state politics. That showed his kinship with people. He is a model for the younger generation in politics,” said Vijayan.

Calling Chandy a “pillar” of the Congress party, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the party would miss “his wise counsel”.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also paid tribute to the Congress leader and wrote, “We have lost a humble and dedicated leader who devoted his life to public service and worked towards the progress of Kerala.”

CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan said Chandy, who had been undergoing cancer treatment for the last few years, marked the Congress politics in Kerala over the previous five decades. Govindan added that he left behind his footprints in state politics as a Congress leader and administrator.

In his Facebook post, Congress state president K Sudhakaran said the death of Chandy marked the “end of a king who conquered the world with love”. “He always remained close to the people. He was a wonder in state politics,” said Sudhakaran.

Senior Congress MLA and Opposition Leader V D Satheesan said Chandy was a last resort for people from Kerala in any corner of the world. For Chandy, power was meant to get closer to the people. He was connected to the people and their lives.

BJP state president K Surendran recalled that Chandy contributed immensely to the state’s development. “He was a mass leader who lived among the people for the last six decades. He intervened in people’s issues irrespective of their politics,” said Surendran.

The mortal remains of the Chandy are at the residence of former minister T John. They were to be flown to Thiruvananthapuram and kept on display at the Congress state committee office and the durbar hall of the secretariat for the public to pay their last respects.

Congress leader K C Venugopal, RSP’s N K Premachandran, Muslim League’s P K Kunhalikutty and Forward Bloc’s D Devarajan reached John’s residence on Tuesday, along with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, and paid their last respects to Chandy.

The Kerala government declared two-day state mourning and a public holiday Tuesday. His funeral will be held in his hometown, Puthuppally in Kottayam, on Thursday.