Rahul Gandhi took a short time off his hectic campaign schedule on Wednesday to spend a few poignant moments remembering his father at an old shrine in Wayanad.
The Congress president visited Thirunelli in his Kerala constituency to perform a bali tarpanam at the Vishnu temple, paying his respects to the souls of his father Rajiv Gandhi and other dead ancestors.
Sources said Rahul had long wanted to perform the ritual at the temple, where an urn containing Rajiv’s ashes had been immersed in 1991.
The late Congress stalwart K. Karunakaran and current state unit president Mullapally Ramachandran had participated in the ashes immersion ritual in 1991. On Wednesday, Ramachandran was among those accompanying Rahul to the shrine.
An earlier plan to visit the temple had been cancelled owing to fears of Maoist presence in the surrounding forests, Congress sources said. Rahul insisted on the visit this time.
After overnight stay at Kannur, Rahul and a handful of other Congress leaders arrived at Thirunelli in a helicopter at 9.55am.
He was driven to the temple guesthouse, less than 1km from the makeshift helipad at a school. Since it was a private visit, only a small group of party workers and local people were allowed near the guesthouse.
After a shower, Rahul changed into the traditional Kerala attire of a mundu (dhoti) and a mel mundu (wrap) and walked to the temple. A priest, Sukumaran Unni, chanted a few Malayalam mantras that Rahul repeated, halting at a few places.
In accordance with custom, he walked to the Papanasini stream 700 metres away along with Ramachandran, Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal, AICC observer K.V. Thankabalu and a handful of security personnel.
Rahul climbed down to the stream, where priest Ganesh Bhattathiri was waiting with his assistant. The 15-minute ritual saw Rahul repeat the Sanskrit mantras chanted by Bhattathiri.
He first took the name of his father, then those of his great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, grandmother Indira Gandhi and maternal grandfather Stefano Maino.
Everything was done the usual way, and in keeping with the temple rule that all such rituals conclude by 11am. The area had, however, been cleared for a short time to meet the security protocol the Special Protection Group had worked out for the visit.
Rahul then walked all the way round the ancient shrine and prayed. He went back to the temple guesthouse, changed into his usual white kurta and trousers and interacted with the gathered party workers and local people.
Before heading to the helipad, Venugopal told reporters that Rahul had also prayed for the soldiers who had died defending the country, including the CRPF men killed in the Pulwama attack, and Congress workers killed in political violence.
“He followed the rituals precisely and did what the priest said,” Venugopal said.
Rahul began the day’s campaigning from Sulthan Bathery.