Veteran Congress leader and former Governor of six States, including Maharashtra, K. Sankaranarayanan was given a tearful farewell here on Monday. He died at his house here on Sunday night, and was cremated at his ancestral house at Painkulam in Thrissur district on Monday evening with State honours.
People from different walks of life poured in to his house at Sekharipuram in Palakkad town to pay him their last respects since Sunday night. They included senior leaders of all political parties.
Minister for the Welfare of SC/ST and Backward Communities K. Radhakrishnan laid a wreath on the Congress leader’s body on behalf of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. District Collector Mrunmai Joshi paid tributes on behalf of the State Chief Secretary.
Speaker M.B. Rajesh; Minister for Power K. Krishnankutty; Palakkad Bishop Mar Peter Kochupurakkal; former Bishop Mar Jacob Manathodath; KPCC president K. Sudhakaran; Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan; UDF convener M.M. Hassan; former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy; Benny Behanan, Jeby Mather, V.K. Sreekandan, and Abdussamad Samadani, MPs; Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) national general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty, MLA; State president Syed Sadikali Shihab Thangal; Shafi Parambil, MLA; N. Shamsuddin, MLA; DCC president A. Thankappan; and many leaders of the Congress and the Youth Congress paid him homage first at his house and then at the District Congress Committee office.
The body was taken to Shoranur in the afternoon on a KSRTC bus with dozens of vehicles in convoy, and cremated at his ancestral house compound at Painkulam in Thrissur district. Hundreds of people paid him respects at Shoranur.
Beyond political ties
Speaker M.B. Rajesh said that Sankaranarayanan had upheld higher political values throughout his life. “His behavior never reflected his positions,” said Mr. Rajesh. Mr. Radhakrishnan described the veteran Congress leader as a tall political figure who maintained relations above political affiliations. Mr. Shihab Thangal said that Sankaranarayanan maintained cordial relations with everyone.
According to Mr. Kunhalikutty, Sankaranarayanan’s death was a loss to the country. “The period of his convenership was the golden era of the UDF in Kerala,” he said. Mr. Samadani described the departed Congress leader as kind and large-hearted.
‘Leader without enemies’
Mr. Sudhakaran said that Sankaranarayanan faced all issues with an open mind. Mr. Satheesan compared Sankaranarayanan to a caparisoned elephant. “He was a leader without enemies,” he said. According to Mr. Hassan, the UDF lost a veteran leader in all sense.
Kodikkunnil Suresh, MP, said that Sankaranarayanan’s work was exemplary both as Governor of six States and leader of the UDF.
