When Chief Minister Oomen Chandy inaugurated Shanthi Mahal (or Peace Palace) on December 27, the dream A.K.B. Kumar, a 61-year old former naval officer, cherished for more than 16 years, came true.
Kumar, who spent about Rs 1.25 crore without any assistance from anyone, started constructing Shanthi Mahal in Thumboli, Alappauzha, in January 2008.
Shanti Mahal has four minarets at the corners representing the heroes of the armed forces who were killed in action.
The central structure, which is decked up with pictures of the war heroes and the consequences of the worst war ever fought in the world, is dedicated to the victims of terrorism.
Kumar, who is the author of an English novel called In the year of the Devil, says he would like to see the world free from war.
“What is the need to have war forces in a county? If every country takes the decision to have a world without war, poverty can be eradicated. We are spending lion’s share of our income to increase the power of our war forces. I think it is useless and unnecessary,” he says.
In spite of this, Kumar has shown the passion to erect a replica of the war victims. He plans to open his dream Mahal to the public as well. “This would be a public place. I spent one acre of land owned by my wife for the competition of the Mahal.”
“When we were fighting in the Indo-Pak war in the 1971, I witnessed the death of as many as 160 soldiers as INS Kukri collapsed following the enemy’s attack.
This incident haunted me, resulting in the idea a memorial construction on the lines of the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders in the world, the whiteness of which represents peace,” he said.
The winner of the Gold pen literary award, presented by Justice Krishna Iyer, Kumar is all set to publish another novel.
“Let us embrace humanism and cut terrorism, let me embrace concord and expel discord,” he signs out, looking at his dream mahal.
