Expats pay tributes to departed leader
Dec. 6: Expatriates in Muscat from the Tamil Nadu state of India paid glowing tribute to their leader, J Jayalalithaa, who died on Monday night. She breathed her last at a private hospital in Chennai, the state’s capital, after battling for life for more than two months. South Indians, especially those from Tamil Nadu, said they had lost “not just a political leader, but a person who cared” for them and “listened to their concerns”.
Hema Murali, a resident of Muscat and a close relative of Jayalalithaa, recalled the leader’s fight against all odds. “When she was not allowed to accompany the vehicle carrying the body of former Tamil Nadu chief minister M G Ramachandran (1987), she said, ‘The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me’. This aptly describes her.”
Hema said she was blessed to have had the good fortune of witnessing her from so close on many occasions. “One such moment was when she (Jayalalithaa) was repeatedly humiliated at MGR’s funeral.”
“Today she is mourned by the country as one of its dearest. I stand in awe of the superior intellect and erudition and her larger-than-life persona in the male-dominated world of Dravidian politics,” said Hema.
“She is an inspiration for every woman who faces numerous challenges that life throws up,” she said.
She said the tributes pouring in from leaders across the political spectrum, including arch rivals DMK and the poorest sections of society, is a testimony to her phenomenal success and popularity.
Narayanan and Chithra Narayanan, both educationists in Muscat, said with the demise of Jayalalithaa, Tamil Nadu and Indian politics has lost a charismatic and dynamic leader.
“Although she is often criticised by her opponents of being dictatorial, we cannot ignore the fact that she was the ‘comeback queen of Indian politics’, having served five terms as chief minister,” they said.
Many expats the Observer spoke to attributed her phenomenal success to her welfare schemes under the name ‘Amma’, including Amma Canteen, Amma Seeds, Amma Cement, Amma Distilled Water, healthcare initiatives, to name a few.
“We have lost a dynamic leader who lived for the people and fought for the people,” said Dr A Venkatesh, orthopaedic surgeon at Atlas Hospital.