Muslim family hosts final farewell for former MLA’s son Ramesh in Perinthalmanna

Malappuram: The final journey of Ramesh Nambiar, who died after suffering a cardiac arrest while travelling on his motorcycle last week, became a poignant reminder of the deep bonds of communal harmony that define everyday life in Malappuram.

Ramesh, 67, son of a once-prominent landlord and Communist MLA, passed away on Wednesday after battling for nearly a day on ventilator support at the district hospital. Local residents had rushed him to the hospital after he was found collapsed on the roadside during his ride.

When his body was brought back to his rented quarters on Jubilee Road after the post-mortem on Thursday, the family of the house owner, Abdul Hamid, stepped forward with a gesture that moved many.

Hamid, an autorickshaw driver in Perinthalmanna, along with his family — including his 90-year-old mother Iyyadiya — requested Ramesh's family to keep the mortal remains at their home and opened their ancestral house nearby for the final rites. Hamid's son Nizam lit a traditional lamp and incense beside the body, a quiet moment that many present described as symbolic of the region's spirit of coexistence.

According to friends and relatives, Hamid's family had long shared a close bond with the couple. Ramesh and his wife Vinodini, who have no children, had been living in the rented quarters for more than two decades. Over the years, Hamid's three children had grown up alongside them and came to regard the couple as family.

"From the moment Rameshettan was admitted to the hospital, we were praying for his recovery. My grandmother was in tears when he passed away. They shared a very strong bond. My sisters Suhara and Lubna were also very attached to him. His sudden death was a great shock to us," said Nizam.

Ramesh was the son of P Govindan Nambiar, a prominent Communist leader who won the Perinthalmanna constituency in the first general election in 1957 and served as the area's first MLA and panchayat president. Once a major landowner, Govindan Nambiar had sacrificed much of his wealth for the Communist movement, said Jayachandran K P, a friend of Ramesh.

Ramesh himself became politically active at a young age. While studying in high school during the Emergency, he joined student protests against the government and was detained for nearly a month in the Perinthalmanna sub-jail.

Despite coming from a once-prosperous family, Ramesh lived a modest life and worked hard to support himself. Vinodini currently serves as the secretary of the CPM's Jubilee Road West branch.

Friends also recalled that Ramesh had wished to donate his body for medical study. However, that wish could not be fulfilled as a post-mortem examination had been conducted.