Nest has lost its guardian

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister T M Jacob had always been a good servant of the people, a fact testified by the long list of best legislator awards he won over the years. But for his own domestic helps, he was the best master one could ever have. And, for the same reason, ‘Nest’, his official residence, no more means a shelter, for they have lost their guardian.They were yet to recover from the shock of the sad news when the City Express team visited them.   ‘’He spoke little, but kept a regular tab on our welfare. He had no ego either, he used to address me as ‘chetta’ (big brother),’’ said Padmanabhan, with Jacob for the past 13 years as his laundryman. He was standing outside Jacob’s locked residence, house no: 24, at Bain’s Court, near the Cliff House.  According to Gomathy, the cook for Jacob for the past two years, it is difficult to find a more simple man in life. ‘’Despite being a great leader who had thousands of men at his beck and call, he never demanded anything in life. He was not even particular about the food he ate and was always satisfied with whatever food I cooked. He seldom raised any complaints about my cooking,’’ said Gomathi.  Even the staff at Nest, his official residence, who had known him for less than two months during his stay here, were so moved by his conduct towards the domestic helps that they decided to go to Piravam on their own to attend the funeral. ‘’He barely knew us. But he made sure we were happy. He personally gave us all financial support to celebrate Onam with pomp,’’ said Mohan Das, the sweeper at ‘Nest’.