Kottayam: Congress president Rahul Gandhi visited the berea-ved family members of the late Kerala Congress (M) leader K.M. Mani at Pala on Tuesday.
Rahul, who reached the Karingozhakkal house around 2 p.m. after attending an election campaign meeting in Pathanamth-itta, was received by the late leader’s son and Rajya Sabha MP Jose K. Mani. The chopper carrying him touched down at the St.Thomas College ground at Pala, from where he proceeded to the house by road. Rahul spent about 15 minutes with Mani’s family members and paid floral tributes on his portrait.
Rahul was accompanied by Congress leaders Mukul Wasnik, K.C. Venugopal, Oommen Chandy, Mulla-ppally Ramachandran and Ramesh Chennithala.
Pala Bishop Joseph Kallarangattu, Auxiliary Bishop Jacob Murickan and Bishop Emeritus Joseph Pallikkaparambil, KC (M) MLAs Roshy Augustine, Mons Joseph and other leaders were present at the house during Rahul’s visit.
Rahul told reporters that Mani was a towering leader and the voice of the people of Kerala. “It is an honour for me to come here and pay my respects. As a senior leader with tremendous experience, he was somebody I would listen to and appreciate,” he said.
Jose K. Mani later said Rahul interacted with the family members, including Kuttiyamma, wife of the late leader. “Since he was not able to come for the funeral, Rahul was planning to reach here on his next visit to Kerala,” he said.
Keep yourself updated on Lok Sabha Elections 2019 with our round-the-clock coverage -- breaking news, updates, analyses et all. Happy reading.
