The seemingly indelible message dating back to the first Lok Sabha poll in 1952 is still bright

A century-old two-storied building near Kochi’s busy Edappally Market Junction has always caught the attention of observant passers-by.

Etched on the first-floor wall of the building is an indelible piece of electoral history dating back nearly seven decades: weathered red graffiti seeking votes for Congress candidates, A.M. Thomas and A.V. Joseph, contesting on its bullock cart symbol.

“Just a few months ago, the clay roof tiles were replaced with an aluminium sheet which covered a part of the graffiti which was entirely visible until then,” said 53-year-old Johnson, a tenant of the building who has inherited his father Joseph’s vegetable shop, started some 70 years ago.

Political historian A. Jayasankar said the graffiti pertained to the first Lok Sabha election in 1952 when A.M. Thomas successfully contested from the Ernakulam Lok Sabha constituency. A.V. Joseph contested from probably the Elamkulam constituency in the elections to the Travancore-Cochin Legislative Assembly held simultaneously, he said.

That the first floor had in the past served as a Congress party office explains how the graffiti appeared on its side wall in the first place. It now serves as a youth club.

Seated with his wife Leelamma in his small tailoring shop, which he has been running from the building for over 50 years, 79-year-old Jose seemed indifferent to the significance of the graffiti. When asked who owned the building, he simply gestured towards a sticker that announced St. George’s Forane Church, Edapally, as the owner.

Did the church choose to preserve the graffiti on account of its historic significance? No, said K.S. Joshy, a church office-bearer. “It simply wasn’t possible to paint the building with the kind of roof it had,” he said.

A.P. Sabu, a graffiti writer, said: “It was probably written using a powder available in those times, which was mixed with glue and water for longevity .”