Chengannur by-election: Leader who knows his voters by name!
He knows most of the voters by name and can share food from any home without formality.
Thiruvananthapuram: D. Vijayakumar, 65, who has been picked by the Congress to contest the Chengannur by-election, is a popular face in the constituency. He is currently president of Chengannur Co-operative Bank and national vice- president of Ayyappa Seva Sangham. He enjoys good rapport with the locals as he has been doing dedicated service to them for over four decades.
He knows most of the voters by name and can share food from any home without formality. This is bound to help him in the by-election caused by the demise of sitting MLA, K. K. Ramachandran Nair of the CPM.
Once Vijayakumar was the trusted lieutenant of K. Karunakaran. He had earlier conceded the seat to Sobhana George (1991, 1996 and 2001) and P. C. Vishnunath (2006 and 2011). As Vishnunath expressed the desire to continue as AICC secretary in charge of Karnataka Assembly elections, Vijayakumar has finally entered the battlefield.
His daughter Jyothi Vijayakumar, 39, who rose to fame for her excellent translations of the speeches of Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his predecessor Sonia Gandhi, was also projected as a candidate. But the AICC wanted only a "winnable" candidate to wrest the seat from the CPM.
Vijayakumar sports a black tilak on his forehead which is Ganapathy's offering. He was a PG student in political science in Jabalpur and later an LLB student and can can converse well in Hindi. He is also a good swinger. His wife is Radhika.
Vijayakumar was KSU's unit vice-president at Changanassery NSS College during his degree days. His father is the late K. M. Damodaran Pillai, a devout Congress supporter and a primary school teacher, and mother the late Sarojini Amma.
When news channels announced his name, Jyothi's son Govardhan, 6, declared, "you both need not contest. Instead I will contest as a juvenile MLA."
Jyothi Vijayakumar is elated over her father’s selection. She is teaching at Kerala State Civil Service Academy and the other daughter Lekshmi is assistant professor in Rajagiri College of Engineering, Kochi.
Vijayakumar used to tell his close friends and family that "my best is yet to come". The time has come to prove his mettle as a leader who connects with all sections of society.