Former minister Lonappan Nambadan, popularly known as Nambadan Mash, was laid to rest with full state honours at the cemetery of St Antony’s Church, Perambra, here, on Thursday in the presence of a large gathering of party activists, friends and family members.
Nambadan, 78, passed away in a private hospital in Kochi on Wednesday afternoon following renal failure. His body was brought to the Town Hall at Irinjalakuda, the centre of the erstwhile Mukundapuram constituency from where he was last elected to the Parliament in 2004, in the morning from his home in the Kodakara constituency for the public to pay their last respects.
Setting aside political differences, there was a steady stream of visitors to pay homage to the leader, after which the cortege set off for his house by noon.
Thousands of people also paid their last respects to the departed leader at his residence. Among those who paid their homage were CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, Opposition Leader V S Achuthanandan, CPM leaders Thomas Isaac, M V Govindan, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Metropolitan of Thrissur Diocese Mor Athanasius Elias, Ministers K M Mani, M K Muneer and C N Balakrishnan, MPs K P Danapalan and K Chandranpillai, MLAs B D Devasya, Thomas Unniyadan, K Radhakrishnan, Saju Paul, V S Sunilkumar, K V Abdul Khader and C Raveendranath and other local representatives and religious leaders.
His former Cabinet colleagues also visited Namabadan’s residence to mourn the death of the former minister. Large crowds also lined the route of the ceremonial funeral procession as Nambadan’s coffin draped in red flag was taken to the church. A hartal was observed in the constituency as a mark of respect to the departed leader.