THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Whether he wins or not, Michael Raj already has enough reasons to smile. When this first year BCom student decided to contest in the University Senate elections as a KSU candidate, there was no room for reservations. He has long been engaged in a much bolder struggle with his blindness since birth. ‘’Although the decision to field me in the elections was made by the organisation, I was game for it. I wanted to prove that blind people or for that matter the disabled are in no way inferior to others,’’ says Michael, a student of Mar Ivanios College. Michael was partially blind from birth itself. After consulting several doctors, his parents found out that the lost sight can never be regained. They sent Michael to school despite many adversities. The lad’s determination finally paid off as he passed matriculation from SMV school. “Sharing seats with the normal students was a bit difficult at first. But the teachers supported me and insisted that I should not limit my prospects thinking that I am blind,” Michael remembers. Despite the rivalry, even the SFI workers are all praise for Michael . “We might have different political opinions, but Michael deserves an applause for his indomitable spirit ,” says an SFI activist. According to Michael, his parents were unyielding to his decision to battle the elections. They wanted him to grab a government job first. His father Selvaraj, who is a fish vendor, tried his level best to dissuade Michael from his decision . “I thought about it a lot. And I realised that my decision to contest the election was right,” Michael justifies his decision. If he wins, he wants to be a true representative of the differently-abled students of the Senate.”That is what my candidacy is all about,” adds Michael, who draws his inspiration from the late Leader K Karunakaran.
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