Oommen Chandy travelled no-frills on a train journey that lasted 160 kms.
Highlights
- Oommen Chandy of Congress lost May election in April
- Photographed on Monday in sleeper coach of train
- Am against VIP culture, like mixing with people: Chandy
Reclining, and then stretched out on a berth in the slepper-class compartment of a train, Oommen Chandy is the very picture of a political outlier. The former Chief Minister of Kerala travelled no-frills on Monday on a train journey that lasted 160 kms and ended in the capital of Thiruvananthapuram.
Social media is giving him a whole lot of love over the photos but Mr Chandy, who belongs to the Congress, can't fathom the ooh-ing and aah-ing. "I prefer traveling in sleeper class on trains which don't have a heavy rush, especially the long-distance ones," he told NDTV. "I get to mingle with people, otherwise it can get very lonely. I don't believe in any VIP treatment."
It is safe to say that places Mr Chandy in a sparsely-populated corner. Weeks ago, a group of parliamentarians sought to impress upon airlines that they should, on account of their designations, get specially priced seats, access to VIP lounges even if they are flying coach, and receive special assistance to board and disembark.
Mr Chandy lost the election in May and his government was replaced by the Left-led alliance. Weeks after that, he rode a bus from Kollam to Thiruvananthapuram, a distance of around 70 kms, because he couldn't get a train ticket and didn't want to miss an important political meeting in the capital.
While he was Chief Minister, he was photographed walking after leaving a train that had stalled. Instead of waiting for his official convoy, he started striding away.
But the newest sample of his traveling habits has a few people trying to poke holes in the theory of him as an unfussy passenger. Turns out you can't please everybody.