THRISSUR: While college campuses always have one or other old student to be proud of, the legendary Sree Kerala Varma College (SKVC) in Thrissur has a special moment with six of its old students elected as MLAs in the recent elections -- all under an LDF ticket.
The alumni and batchmates' groups in SKVC look forward to seeing their classmates in the assembly together. K Rajan who was elected from Ollur, Murali Perunnelli who was re-elected from Manalur, P Balachandran who got elected from Thrissur, V R Sunilkumar who got reelected from Kodungallur, R Bindu who will represent Irinjalakkuda and K Radhakrishnan who got elected from Chelakkara are the six newly-elected MLAs who will make history.
Meanwhile, R Bindu worked as principal of the college and resigned her post to contest the elections.
However, having old students for elected representatives is not something new for the college. From Therambil Ramakrishnan to John Brittas, many regional and state-level leaders have had the chance to study here. Writers like N N Kakkad, P Sankaran and Maythil Radhakrishnan, actors like Samyuktha Varma and Narain, businessmen like T S Kalyanaraman and C K Menon among others trace their college days to SKVC.
"It is a legacy which probably no other college in the state enjoys. SKVC has always been a campus with intense political happenings. And achievements like these are a product of this," said Agriculture Minister V S Sunilkumar, who is an alumnus of the college. He added that during the election campaign, this shared connection with the college helped a lot in reaching out to people and seeking votes. "When you visit houses for the election campaign, in Thrissur town at least one family member will be a product of Sree Kerala Varma College and we feel easily connected with them," he said.