Thomas Chandy’s ascension to power was the natural culmination of political developments in the State, but it’s a hard-won victory for the businessman-turned- politician.
A person with assets worth over ₹93 crore, Mr. Chandy, who could be considered the ‘Trump of Kerala’ politics in terms of his wealth and power, had won keen battles at the hustings before becoming the fourth Minister from Alappuzha district in the Pinarayi government.
Mr. Chandy had fought a stiff electoral contest at the Assembly elections in Kuttanad last year. He was pitted against Subash Vasu, the candidate of the Bharat Dharma Jana Sena, part of the National Democratic Alliance in Kerala. None other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi had campaigned for Mr. Vasu, but that could make little impact on the prospects of Mr. Chandy or the Nationalist Congress Party, his party in the Left Democratic Front camp.
The 69-year-old veteran of educational and business ventures hails from a conventional agricultural family. He went to Kuwait on a visiting visa in 1975 and worked with various companies for 10 years.
Mr. Chandy was a Youth Congress worker prior to his migration to Kuwait. As president of the Gulf Malayali Congress, he had come across problems faced by expatriates, which prompted him to start a school there. The school had grown into a well known institution. More schools were started in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. A chain of business and tourism establishments are owned by him. He is also the chairman of a charitable society.
