This aged couple eke out a living by seeking alms after they were deserted by their children; but, come elections, they set apart the day to exercise their franchise.
Voters who lined up to cast their votes at Schwartz Higher Secondary School in Ramanathapuram Assembly constituency watched in awe as the visually impaired P. Vasu and his wife Muthammal walked out after casting their votes.
Mr. Velu, who had lost his vision after failing to seek timely medical intervention, was guided by his wife to the polling station. Both could not tell how old they were.
The man said he must be more than 90 years old and his wife more than 80 years. “We have been voting for more than 50 years ever since a party promised to give one measure of rice for a rupee,” said Mr. Velu, referring to former Chief Minister C.N. Annadurai’s famous ‘A-measure-a-rupee’ scheme.
Ardent fans of former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran, they had been voting for MGR and after his demise they lost interest in politics, they said.
The couple, however, make it a point to cast their votes in every election. They would not reveal to whom they voted. “She took me inside and just pressed a button,” said Mr. Velu with a mischievous grin.
No political party or candidate approached them, seeking votes or offering cash for votes, they said. “They might have thought we are beggars and will not have votes,” Mr. Velu said with a derisive smile.
On Monday morning, the couple braved sharp showers to visit the polling booth at Arignar Anna Middle School near the municipal office only to find that their polling booth was at Schwartz school, about a km away.
Undeterred, they walked all the way to the school and cast their votes.
They were deserted by their two daughters after they were married off. Belonging to Kaattu Nayakkan community, Mr. Velu initially eked out a living by hunting birds and later rearing pigs.
