Thiruvananthapuram: Girija is the wife of former Kerala Minister P K Velayudhan. She survives on the family pension of her deceased husband. She does not own any property, and has to keep moving from one rented home to another. After noticing her plight, the Thiruvananthapuram corporation has decided to allot a house for her.
Velayudhan served as the Minister for Rural Development and Transport in the third Karunakaran ministry.
Velayudhan tied the knot to Girija at Paramekkavu in Thrissur in 1975. Several senior Congress leaders had attended their wedding. The couple lived at Velayudhan's ancestral house in Thrissur till he became a Minister in 1983. And then the couple shifted to a house named 'Kalpana'.
After his stint as a minister, Velayudhan continued to work for the Congress party. He also built a house at PTP Nagar but had to sell it to pay off his debts. He along with his family lived at various rented homes in Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram.
Velayudhan died on May 16, 2003. Since she was alone after his demise, Girija found it difficult to get a house on rent. Though she sent letters to several Chief Ministers, explaining her plight, none came to her help.
Finally, she wrote a letter to Minister A K Balan through her doctor.
"Sir, I do not have anyone's support. Nor do I have a home. I am also struggling to find money for the treatment expenses. I am tired of shifting from one rented home to another," she said in the letter. Balan then forwarded the letter to the corporation.
After the corporation's welfare standing committee member S S Sindhu took the initiative, a decision was taken to allot a flat for Girija. The 350-sq-ft flat at the apartment complex in Kalladimukham will be handed over to her.
Velayudhan represented the Njarakkal and Pandalam constituencies in the Assembly. He was a KPCC general secretary at the time of his demise.
The KPCC bore the entire medical expenses when Girija suffered from heart ailments in 2018.