The St. George Orthodox Church at Puthuppally, a time-honoured Syrian Christian pilgrimage centre, appears to be courting more visitors with its new-found identity as the gravesite of former Chief Minister and Congress leader Oommen Chandy.
On the back of a continuing influx of people to pay their tributes to Chandy on the premises of the church here, a new pilgrimage circuit combining the location with other key spiritual centres such as the tomb of St. Alphonsa at Bharananganam is gradually taking shape in Central Travancore. The development has also fuelled speculations regarding a possible canonisation of the late leader in future.
Sources with the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, which owns the parish, attested to a strikingly high number of visitors arriving at the church every day and offering prayers at the burial site. “There are also a handful of people who plead intercession of the late leader for their personal prayers to God. The church regards this as an expression of their love for Chandy,” noted a senior functionary of the Orthodox Church.
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