© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Early in the morning Tuesday, I got a call from my mother, then minutes later another, and then another, all with the same words: “Our Oommen Chandy has passed away.”
The news of the death of the former Kerala chief minister after prolonged illness is like having lost a benevolent father, a man who never really cared about himself but the welfare of his people and those around him. Words aren’t simply enough to showcase the love and compassion he had for them.
My Assembly constituency, Puthuppally, has lost its “Kunjunju”. There is no leader who can replace him; Chandy being there was just enough for the people of the constituency.
Across the town, the people I spoke to recalled these qualities of Chandy, especially of a man who never turned away the needy, and never forgot his birthplace. When he moved to Thiruvananthapuram, he carried the place with him, naming his house there “Puthuppally”.
It was like Oommen Chandy was for Puthuppally and Puthuppally was for Oommen Chandy. I grew up hearing the words around me: “If Oommen Chandy is there, your problem will be sorted.” We also grew up seeing him around, at social gatherings and weddings, occasions such as funerals, even if it was for a few minutes.
When my grandfather passed away, he was not able to come down immediately, but made sure to visit two days later.
Chandy’s “Janasamparkka Paripadi” (Mass Contact Programme) cemented his image of being a “people’s leader”. Almost every Sunday, he would travel to Puthuppally from Thiruvananthapuram to attend the early morning mass at St George Orthodox Church and then attend to the people coming to meet him with their grievances and problems. The only period he could not show up frequently at his Puthuppally home was during the pandemic.
Even as his ailment kept him away from Puthuppally in recent years, he made sure that the doors of his home were open for those who needed help.
Then there were his welfare schemes, such as the Karunya Benevolent Fund to provide financial assistance to the poor with serious ailments, especially cancer. While standing at the hospital counter to pay the bills during my mother’s cancer treatment, I heard about the scheme and how it was benefitting people.
It was no surprise then that hundreds of Congress workers, including women, held a demonstration outside Chandy’s residence in Puthuppally in 2021 after reports emerged that the party might move him to Nemom in Thiruvananthapuram district to take on the BJP in the Assembly elections. Many, including my relatives, were heard saying, “Why should we even vote for Congress if Oommen Chandy is not contesting from Puthuppally?”
At the time, Chandy’s health was failing but Puthuppally wanted him to remain its leader no matter if he won or lost (he ended up winning for the 11th straight time). That’s the love he earned for himself. Puthuppally and Kerala have lost a mass leader whose void will be hard to fill.
