THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The controversy over the sale of ‘Varada’, the residence of the late poet Sugathakumari, took a new turn with its new owner rejecting the idea of handing it over to the government. According to the owner, he bought the nine-cent plot and house for residential purpose and was not in a position to part with it.
The owner’s comment to the media came hours after Cultural Affairs Minister Saji Cherian on Monday announced that the government was willing to buy the house from the new owner and convert it into a memorial. The minister’s announcement followed a request from cultural activist Soorya Krishnamoorthy to take over the house. Amid frenzied criticism over the sale of ‘Varada’, the poet’s daughter, Lakshmi Devi, has appealed to the fans to consider more practical options for a memorial. She said the memorial should be a spacious and eco-friendly campus.
“Abhaya, our ancestral house, would be an ideal choice in case they want a place with which my mother had an emotional connection. It was built by my grandfather, the late poet Bodheswaran. My mother and her sisters spent a major part of their lives there. It was there my parents got married,” she said. Lakshmi said she was forced to sell ‘Varada’ after it lost good access to the main road.
“The pathway to my house was blocked by my cousin who owns the ancestral house. Varada is situated on a low-lying plot and the pathway to the house was through the plot where the ancestral house is situated,” she says. “Currently, the plot can be accessed through a narrow lane on the back side. Barely an autorickshaw would pass through that path,” she said.
“Hence, I did not request the government to take over it,” she told TNIE.“While gifting the house, my mother had told me that I can sell it in case I need money for something. I moved out from there only because of the access issue,” she says.Lakshmi also said neither she nor the new owner receive any communication from the government.