'The most enduring part of Satheesan's personality is he is good at heart. That is the reason why everybody, from the old to small children, get attracted to him.'
Key Points
- 'If the UDF did not win more than 100 seats, he would have definitely taken time off from politics.'
- 'If Satheesan had not become chief minister after getting perfect results, it would have been the most depressing thing to happen.'
- 'Those 10 days before the chief minister's name was announced were extremely tension filled for all of us. I was with him in his house, day and night, for three days.'
It was a friendship that began when they were teenagers and had just entered college.
V D Satheesan and Ranjith Thampi have been friends for more than 40 years.
Last week, one of them went on to become chief minister of Kerala.
Thirty years ago when Satheesan was about to start his political journey, Ranjith Thampi's father had predicted that one day, Satheesan would become chief minister as he was 'chief minister material'.
Ranjith Thampi recalls his long association with Kerala's 13th chief minister in this memorable conversation with Shobha Warrier/Rediff.
'He used to come back with medals from all the debate competitions'
1983-1984. Thevara College in Kochi. It was here that I met Satheesan for the first time. We were both degree students.
Though I was studying BCom and he was doing BA Sociology, we were both working for the KSU (Kerala Students Union).
He was a very active leader of the KSU, a very powerful speaker and an excellent organiser for the KSU.
His dynamic personality attracted not just me but many other students of that time. He used to go to all the debate competitions and come back with medals.
That was the beginning of a friendship that has withstood so many years and so many events.
Satheesan was elected a university union councillor when he was in the first year itself.
In the second year, I contested along with him, and both of us became councillors from our college as each college can send two counsellors to the university union.
My father P V Thampi was then chief minister K Karunakaran's press secretary.
My father was a journalist, an intellectual having published an English newspaper from Kerala called Weekly Kerala in 1955-1956.
He was also a great lover of books with a huge library at home.
Satheesan used to visit my house almost every day, and soon became a member of my family.
As Satheesan was a voracious reader, the huge collection of books my father had was a major attraction for him.
My father was quite impressed with Satheesan's interest in books. When he bought a new book, Satheesan became the second person to read it.
Once Satheesan finished reading the book, they used to have very long discussions about the book.
At that time itself, my father saw huge potential in the young Satheesan.
It was because my father saw the organisational capability in Satheesan that when he organised a 20-point programme in our college in 1984, he took Satheesan to meet the district collector. He also introduced Satheesan to Congress leader Pala K M Matthew.
In the presence of all these veteran leaders and the district collector, Satheesan chaired the meeting.
I narrate this incident to tell you that Satheesan could think of unique and different subjects and talk about them authoritatively in front of anyone.
My father saw this capacity and encouraged him immensely.
'Satheesan thinks differently and is always ahead of the times'
In 1984-1985, he had contested to be the Mahatma Gandhi University Union chairman but lost the election.
He couldn't accept the defeat. So, after completing his degree, he joined the Rajagiri College for a diploma in social service. The main reason was he wanted to contest as a councillor from there for the post of MG University Union Chairman. This time he did win.
Satheesan's brother Ajith Kumar and I were elected as councillors from the Thevara College when Satheesan was the chairman.
As chairman, he conduced many programmes. One unique programme was a nature camp in Vagaman to create awareness on protection of the environment.
I can say the person who influenced him was my father who was also an environmental activist. Those were the days when talking about the environment or environmental activism was not a cool thing.
One of the qualities that Satheesan has is he thinks differently and is always ahead of the times.
As chairman, he organised a programme on national integration called Dances of India.
He brought in Mr K R Narayanan, Mr K M Chandy, Mrs Margaret Alva, Mr K G George, etc for various programmes.
'Hope helped him tide over all the disappointments'
After college, there was a bit of gap in his activities as he did not get any important positions in the party.
He thought he would become the KSU president, but he did not become either the KSU president or the Youth Congress president. Naturally, he was very disappointed.
So, he decided to study LLB and LLM and become an advocate.
That was when we went to see the Sreenivasan film, Sandesam. The movie was about a young man trying to be someone in politics but never succeeding.
The film ends with the message that you have to start working if you do not have a political career.
In politics, you survive on hope, the hope that you will get an opportunity sometime in future. In Satheesan's case, it was hope that helped him tide over all the disappointments.
The message in the film hit Satheesan hard and he decided to join a firm and start practising as an advocate.
As he continued his career as an advocate -- he was quite successful -- the big break in politics came.
He was appointed secretary of the NSUI (National Students Union of India, a wing of the Congress party).
'My father predicted he was CM material even before he contested an election!'
In the 1990s my father used to organise get-togethers of people from different walks of life on every Friday at our house. It was called Dialogue.
His invitees used to talk about books, the environment, politics and many such topics. They were all learned intellectuals.
The only person from our generation who got entry into the group was Satheesan, nobody else, not even me, his son! My father encouraged him to talk on all the subjects they discussed.
As a tribute to my father's vision, Satheesan started a YouTube channel in 2022 and named it Dialogue.
Satheesan interviewed doctors, entrepreneurs, activists, literary personalities. He identified the problems faced by different sectors and through the interviews, they came up with some solutions.
The first interview was with Dr Thomas Isaac, the former finance minister.
It was when Satheesan was secretary of the NSUI that he was chosen to contest from Paravur for the assembly. The year was 1996.
Even before he was chosen, my father had met Jacob Cherian, (former civil servant, governor, ambassador) Dr P C Alexander's nephew, and said, you should see to it that Satheesan got a chance to contest as he was CM material!
Jacob Cherian wrote in his diary in 1996 that my father had predicted that Satheesan was CM material.
Imagine my father predicted this before he contested an election!
Now that Satheesan has become chief minister of Kerala, what my father predicted and what Jacob Cherian wrote in the diary has become a big story in Kerala!
'There were so many setbacks in Satheesan's political journey'
In the first election Satheesan contested, he was defeated by 1,100 votes. It depressed him a lot.
It was a bad election year for the Congress. Even K Karunakaran lost the election.
Like I said earlier, we live on hope in politics.
He hoped and believed that there would be a comeback for him.
There were so many setbacks in Satheesan's political journey. He looked at the defeat of just 1,000 votes as a small setback.
But he did not abandon the constituency after the defeat. It made him all the more determined to continue to work there as he had lots of ideas for Paravur.
In 2001, Satheesan won from Paravur by 7,000 votes. After that, there was no looking back. He won all the elections from Paravur then onwards, in 2006, 2011, 2016, 2021, 2026.
In 1997 my father passed away battling cancer.
In the 1990s, my father had started an environment organisation called Environment Monitoring Forum. He did a lot of seminars and interactive programmes and brought out a book on the environment.
Satheesan was actively involved in all those programmes as he had a very clear idea about the environment and environment related issues.
After my father died, we decided to start an environmental award in his memory.
Satheesan has been actively involved in this from the very beginning.
What we wanted to do was recognise ordinary people doing extraordinary work for the environment.
We identify people who are not well known but who do extraordinary work protecting the environment.
We have been doing this for the last 28 years without any break.
Some of the people we have given award to went on to get the Padma Shri! For example, Cheruvayal Raman got the Padma Shri in 2023; we had recognised him in 2013.
'I told him don't take it to heart. Your time will come one day!'
In 2011 after the UDF won the election and Oommen Chandy became chief minister, it was almost certain that Satheesan would be made a minister. After all, his debate on lottery with Dr Thomas Isaac was the major highlight before the election.
Again in 2015, when Ramesh Chennithala became home minister, he was expected to be the KPCC (Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee) president. It also did not happen.
He was upset. I told him don't take it to heart. Your time will come one day!
In politics you continue working hoping your time also will come one day.
In 2021 though the Congress lost the election, Satheesan became the Leader of the Opposition. Had the UDF (United Democratic Front) won, Ramesh Chennithala would definitely have become the chief minister.
From then onwards, the UDF won by-elections, the 2024 Lok Sabha election and the local body election.
Finally, he could make the UDF come back with a record 102 seats.
'He even said he would take vanavas if it was a defeat for the UDF'
During the entire campaign this year, Satheesan had said 'I will take full accountability in case the Congress gets defeated.'
He even said he would take vanavas if it was a defeat for the UDF. It was a very serious statement to make.
But he knew the UDF would win more than 100 seats. He said so at many venues. It was not a prediction or over confidence, it was the voice of a leader who understood the ground reality well.
If the UDF did not win more than 100 seats, he would have definitely taken time off from politics.
Nobody in the Congress believed that they would get more than 100 seats. But Satheesan was very confident.
Even for the Congress, his plan was Plan 63 (that the Congress would win 63 seats). This also came true.
He also said 12 ministers from the Pinarayi government -- plus or minus one -- will get defeated. That also came true.
Trekking had been our passion even when we were young. The first trekking trip we had was in 1984-1985 to Parambikulam.
He is in love with nature. He loves watching wildlife and just being with nature.
Our trips started as visits to nature which later on turned to trekking.
The latest trip was the continuation of a friendship we had developed over the last 43 years, from our college days.
It was the celebration of Satheesan's election work which we knew he would emerge victorious from.
This time, the entire gang joined the trip with their families and children.
Ramesh Chennithala was always in the race to be chief minister but K C Venugopal's entry was a surprise.
Those 10 days before the chief minister's name was announced were extremely tension filled for all of us.
I was with him in his house, day and night, for three days.
Somehow, he was confident that his hard work would pay off. In fact, he did not watch the news at all. Instead, he watched the Safari channel. But the rest of us were very tense.
If Satheesan had not become chief minister after doing so well and getting perfect results, it would have been the most depressing thing to happen.
What surprised us was the genuine protest of people all over Kerala. Everyone compared it to 2006 when the CPI-M did not let V S Achuthanandan contest.
It went to the extent of people not allowing those MLAs who expressed allegiance to another person get inside the constituencies.
That is because more than any achievement, the most enduring part of Satheesan's personality is he is good at heart. That is the reason why everybody, from the old to small children get attracted to him.
Ultimately he became the chief minister of Kerala. It has been a long journey, a journey spanning 43 long years, and I can see every incident in our lives like in a movie.
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff
