The distance between Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram and Puthuppally in Kottayam district is less than 150 kms. A modern car would not take more than three hours to cover the distance. Yet, the bus carrying the mortal remains of former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy (79) took nearly 40 hours.

No, it was not because of flood or any natural calamity that the cortège took so much time. Yes, there was a flood of people waiting all along the route to have a glimpse of the mortal remains of the leader, who died of cancer and related ailments. The Main Central Road, known as MC Road, literally became the Oommen Chandy (OC) Road!

It has always been a question, whose funeral procession attracted the largest crowd. Many say it was Mahatma Gandhi’s last journey to Rajghat that saw the largest turnout of people. People from the North-East claim with facts and figures that it was poet and singer Bhupen Hazarika’s funeral that recorded the largest number.

Anyone who saw on television the response of the people to the death of Oommen Chandy would vouch for the fact that Kerala never witnessed such an emotional farewell to a leader. Of course, I will not forget the funeral processions of CPM leader E K Nayanar and Congress leader K Karunakaran.

There are many characteristics that distinguish Oommen Chandy from other leaders. Before I dwell upon it, let me mention V K Cherian, a Delhi-based journalist, who claims to have an aversion for organised religion, a synonym for the Christian church. He sent me the video of a bishop paying tributes to Oommen Chandy. The bishop described OC as an ideal Christian leader.

What surprised me was Cherian’s request that I circulate the video among various Christian groups, as if that is my primary job. However, his request made me think. 

The only politician I knew who merited the title of God’s Own Politician is William Wilberforce (1759-1833). He campaigned against slavery and for missionary work in India. He was the founder of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Against Animals. He was criticised for showing greater concern for people elsewhere than in England.

In comparison, Oommen Chandy was a hardcore politician, who never mixed politics with religion. He was neither evangelical nor Protestant. He belonged to the Orthodox Syrian Church and considered it his duty to attend the church service at Puthuppally every Sunday. Yet, how did an agnostic like Cherian and a Bishop consider OC as a good Christian? That forced me to reflect upon OC’s attributes, inspired by what I consider the timeless wisdom found in the Bible. 

Oommen Chandy is one leader for whom humility is second nature. He always put the needs of the people before his own ambitions and treated everyone with respect and kindness. His wife Mariamma threw light on the peculiar nature of her husband. If there was one fruit, placed on the dining table, which was slightly rotten, he would surely pick it up and eat. Why did he do so?

I have an explanation for his conduct and it is not far to seek. It can be found in the Biblical prescription, "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves" (Philippians 2:3). He considered his family members and others who dined with him as more important than himself. Such a thought does not come easily to a person.

While he was Chief Minister for about seven years in two terms, he introduced a public-contact programme in which over a million people approached him with memorandums. He met them in the company of his officers and one question he invariably asked them was how could the government help the complainant. Though they were used to taking shelter in red-tapism, they were compelled to take a spot decision because of OC’s presence.

A lady who was thrown out of her house by her own children; a man who wanted to save his father, whom the doctors said would die in a few hours; a mother whose daughter was unable to return from a foreign country because of violence there -- they all found quick solutions after meeting him. OC is reported to have said, “If necessary, I will write to the American President also”. 

On Wednesday, I saw on television, a mother and son, showing their affection to the flux board that carried OC’s picture, placed at a bus stand in Kerala. Before leaving, she knelt and kissed his cheeks before praying for a few seconds. She would be one of the million people who met OC at his public-contact programmes. 

While doing all these, there would have been in the back of Chandy’s mind, another Biblical prescription: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32).

Imagine what would happen to a person if he is identified as throwing a stone at the Prime Minister or a Chief Minister and injuring him. That would be the end of his life. The victim was OC when he was the Chief Minister. He prevented his party men from being revengeful. Not only that, when the case came up for hearing in the court, he deliberately gave a wishy-washy statement that helped the guilty to go scot-free. What’s more, when the man who pelted  the stone apologized to him, he showed a willingness to pose in a selfie with him. He had already forgiven him.

Oommen Chandy was not a great orator like Kaniapuram Ramachandran and his English language skills were nowhere near Shashi Tharoor’s and he was not known to have read any classics from Shakespeare to Manu S. Pillai and Thunchathu Ezhuthachan to M T Vasudevan Nair. But he had wisdom that “surpasses all human understanding”. 

OC believed that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”. When he became Chief Minister the second time, he had a wafer-thin majority. “If three UDF legislators went to the toilet and could not return in time to vote on a Finance Bill, the government would fall,” joked an Opposition leader.
Even before the government could be constituted, word spread that two Christians, OC and K M Mani, and a Muslim, P K Kunjalikutty, would rule the state and the majority Hindus would sulk on the sidelines. For once, his leadership was put to the severest test. He could not afford to offend the majority community.

He sought divine guidance, relying on the wisdom that comes from fearing God. He resolved the issue by giving Home portfolio to Ramesh Chennithala and Revenue to Adoor Prakash, not to mention Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, who became the third in command. 

During the last two days, I read almost all the articles, comments and editorials that appeared in the two largest circulated dailies in Kerala. He was a champion of justice, consistently standing up for the rights of the vulnerable and disadvantaged, and striving to create a more just and equitable society.

What is clear from this is that he strictly followed the Biblical command, "Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow" (Isaiah 1:17). It is not for no reason that tens of thousands of ordinary people, belonging to all castes and creeds, thronged the funeral procession from Thiruvananthapuram to Puthuppally. 

Oommen Chandy embodied the essence of servant leadership. He selflessly served the people, placing their needs above his own, and working tirelessly to bring about positive change in their lives. What is servant leadership? Let me turn once again to the Bible to  explain this phenomenon,

"Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant" (Matthew 20:26). K C Venugopal of the Congress has mentioned that the party was ready to take OC to any hospital in the world for treatment.

He knew that the Emperor of Maladies that he was suffering from had taken its toll and it was pointless to go anywhere for treatment. He followed the advice of his family, especially his wife and son, who loved him more than anyone else in the world. It may be a coincidence that his body was taken in a KSRTC low-floor bus, not on a gun carriage.

Incidentally, this column had expressed its reservation over the use of a gun carriage — the same one used for Mahatma Gandhi in 1948 and for Jawaharlal Nehru in 1964 — for Mother Teresa, now Saint Teresa of Kolkata. OC did not want any state funeral for him as he did not want any facility that was not available to the common man.

As I mentioned, OC was a regular church-goer but there was a time when his own church treated him like an outcast. There was a case between the Orthodox Church and the Jacobite Church. The Supreme Court gave its verdict which was devoid of wisdom. It was the triumph of the church’s money power and the ability to have a lawyer like Fali S. Nariman to plead its case.

It was not OC’s job to capture church buildings for his church. Bishops vied with one another in not attending programmes where OC was present. They also wanted the laity to vote against him. It is a different matter that the people of Puthuppally never allowed him to taste defeat since he contested for the first time in 1970. He believed in the Biblical dictum, “The integrity of the upright guides them" (Proverbs 11:3). 

OC was a man of unwavering integrity, known for his honesty, transparency, and moral character. His actions consistently aligned with his words, earning him the trust and respect of the people he served, no matter what the bishops said. It is a measure of the church leadership’s atonement that it has found a special place, nearer to the altar, to bury him. In contrast, I have seen a picture of OC sitting on the steps while hearing the sermon in the church. 

It can verily be said that Oommen Chandy's life was rooted in faith. He trusted in God, seeking His guidance and strength in every aspect of his political career. His faith was a source of inspiration and hope for those around him. He followed the Biblical teaching, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5).

As I look around, I do not find any other leader coming anywhere near OC in terms of the qualities that I described. I saw an old photograph where Pinarayi Vijayan is pointing out to OC a portion of his shirt which was torn. It did not bother him.

It’s not that OC’s life was a bed of roses. Christians, often, have to face what is known as the spiritual test. Even Jesus had to face the test when he was asked to turn a piece of stone into a piece of bread. It is to evaluate man's individual moral character and obedience to His laws. OC faced such a situation when an allegation was made by Sarita Nair that he sexually assaulted her.

Without any rhyme or reason, the case was referred to the CBI. OC was not perturbed. He was as pure as Sita when she withstood the test of fire. All the inquiries conducted came to the inescapable conclusion that OC was more sinned against than sinning.

Anyone in his position would have turned the tables against his detractors for he had regained the high moral ground. Like Gladys Staines who pardoned the killers of her husband Graham Staines and her sons Philip and Timothy, Oommen Chandy had already pardoned those who used a woman of doubtful character to sully his image, built up over a lifetime. 

As we bid farewell to Oommen Chandy, let us hope that leaders everywhere adhere to his attributes in their own lives, and continue his legacy of selfless service, compassion, justice, and faith. May his soul find eternal rest in the loving embrace of God!

ajphilip@gmail.com