The daughter of a village temple priest, who was murdered along with his son for exposing encroachments on a waterbody at Muthalaipatti near Kulithalai in Karur district, has decided to take the political plunge.
Seeking to “set an example” for women, especially those traumatised by violent crimes, V. Annalakshmi, 38, daughter of A. Veeramalai, the priest of the Ayyanar temple, has decided to contest from Srirangam.
“I have lost my father and elder brother; there is nothing more to lose. Now, my only wish is to serve the people by taking up public causes,” she says.
In July 2019, Veeramalai and his son Nallathambi were hacked to death by a gang for filing a contempt of court petition as part of their fight against encroachers on the Muthalaipatti Eri. Ever since, Ms. Annalakshmi has waged a legal battle to keep the accused behind bars.
She filed a petition before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court for removal of all encroachments from the nearly 200-acre lake that she says has been obliterated and converted into ‘natham’ land; pattas have been issued in the names of the encroachers.
Ms. Annalakshmi has remained single, supporting her younger sister and mother with the modest income from the family’s land at Muthalaipatti.
“By entering public life, I also wish to send out a message that it is important for women not to go into a shell but emerge out of the trauma [of violent incidents],” she says.
Since she lives at Inam Puliyur (near Muthalaipatti), which falls under Srirangam, Ms. Annalakshmi has chosen the constituency. Her candidature is backed by Makkal Pathai, which had supported her through difficult times. “They asked whether I am interested in contesting in the election. I agreed as I wished to enter public life,” she says. However, she would contest as a candidate of the Desiya Makkal Sakthi Katchi on the ‘football’ symbol.
Ms. Annalakshmi has also come up with a charter of promises, which includes establishment of a bus terminus at Srirangam and finding a solution to the long-drawn dispute between residents and the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple on the ownership of property around the temple. Building a check-dam across the Kollidam and setting up a perfume extraction unit for the benefit for floriculturists are her other promises. She also vows to spend 75% of her salary on public welfare.
