By Mohamed Atherulla Shariff
Kasaragod: In an age when religious identities often dominate headlines, a quiet act of humanity from Kerala has reminded the country that compassion can transcend every social and political divide.
The story begins not in a place of celebration but in the lonely suffering of Narayanan Thottathodi, a 64-year-old daily wage earner from Chigrupadavu in Kerala’s Kasaragod district. Once associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Narayanan spent the last chapter of his life battling advanced oral cancer. As the disease consumed him, so did loneliness. According to local accounts, he had been abandoned by his family and left to fend for himself on the streets, often without food or medical care.
For many, Narayanan had become invisible, another forgotten face among society’s neglected elderly. But fate had one final chapter left to write.
It was Irfana Iqbal, a senior leader of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Chairperson of the Development Standing Committee of the Kasaragod District Panchayat, who noticed his plight. Learning that the elderly man was starving and gravely ill, she mobilised local authorities, charitable volunteers and healthcare workers to ensure he received medical attention and dignity during his final days. Despite every effort, Narayanan’s illness proved irreversible. He succumbed to cancer shortly afterwards. Yet death did not end his ordeal.
When hospital authorities tried to contact his relatives, no one came forward to claim his body. The man who had spent a lifetime among family and neighbours now faced the prospect of leaving the world without a final farewell. It was then that Irfana made a decision that has since touched hearts across Kerala and beyond.
With official permission, she accepted responsibility for the deceased man’s last rites. Although she was a Muslim public representative and Narayanan was a Hindu, Irfana insisted that every ritual be conducted strictly according to Hindu traditions. At the Uppala public crematorium, she stood beside the funeral pyre and performed the final rites usually reserved for a son or daughter.
There were no close relatives to mourn him. No family members to light the pyre. Instead, the woman who had known him only in his final days became the daughter he never had.
Irfana affectionately referred to him as ‘Narayanettan’, a respectful Malayalam expression meaning ‘elder brother Narayanan’. After the cremation, she shared a deeply moving message on social media.
“No close relative came. I performed Narayanettan’s last rites as a daughter. Humanity is above religion and politics.” Those few words resonated far beyond Kasaragod.
In a country where stories of communal mistrust frequently dominate public discourse, this quiet act of compassion became a powerful reminder of India’s enduring traditions of coexistence. Social media users across ideological and religious lines praised Irfana’s decision, describing it as an example of humanity triumphing over prejudice.
The symbolism was difficult to ignore. Narayanan had once been associated with an organisation often perceived as ideologically opposed to the Muslim League, and for that matter to the Muslim community. Yet, in the end, neither political affiliations nor religious identities mattered. What remained was the simple human responsibility of ensuring that another person departed this world with dignity.
Community leaders in Kerala observed that the incident reflected the state’s long tradition of interfaith solidarity, where ordinary citizens often step across religious boundaries to help one another in times of crisis. While political debates may divide communities, acts of personal kindness continue to build bridges that no ideology can easily dismantle.
The story also throws light on another growing social concern – the abandonment of elderly people. Across India, increasing numbers of senior citizens find themselves isolated due to illness, poverty or fractured family relationships. Narayanan’s life and death expose a painful reality: sometimes the deepest wounds are not inflicted by disease but by neglect.
For Irfana, however, the decision required no political calculation. She simply saw a dying man who needed care and, later, a deceased man who deserved dignity. In doing so, she challenged the notion that compassion must be limited by identity.
The cremation was not merely the conclusion of one man’s life. It became a profound statement that humanity cannot be measured by religion, caste or political allegiance. It demonstrated that rituals may belong to faiths, but empathy belongs to everyone.
As flames rose from the funeral pyre, they seemed to consume more than a mortal body. They burned away, if only for a moment, the artificial walls that often separate people from one another.
Narayanan Thottathodi left this world without his family by his side. But he did not leave alone. He was accompanied by a woman from another faith who chose to become his family when his own wouldn’t.
In a time marked by division and distrust, that may well be the most important story of all – a reminder that the noblest religion is kindness, and that the greatest act of worship is to preserve another person’s dignity until their very last breath.
