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To many, particularly in north India, Wayanad was a new word in their political lexicon when Congress leader Rahul Gandhi ‘agreed’ to contest from this Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Wayanad has a significant place in the legends of Ramayana. Legends have it that Goddess/Mother Sita lived here after Lord Rama deserted her, unable to bear being mocked by a commoner.

The actual place where Sita lived is believed to have been is Palpully in Wayanad. Palpully is not a completely unknown place. Due to recurring droughts, Palpully once earned the dubious name of “Vidarbha of Kerala”.



Vidarbha in Maharashtra has been one of the extremely water-stressed regions in India. Those who followed the 2018 Kerala floods know that Wayanad suffered severe losses in terms of infrastructure and development symbols. Wayanad goes back to the Ramayana age During the age of Ramayana, Sita, living-in-exile, gave birth to Luv and Kush, the twin-inheritors of the throne of Ayodhya.

According to a legend, it was here that Sage Valmiki had his hermitage or ashram and where he gave shelter to Sita, ensuring that she had a healthy pregnancy and birthed the twins under proper care. This janmasthan of twin princes of Ayodhya is relatively less famous but has a temple in the memory of Sita, Luv and Kush. The existing temple was built during the reign of Kerala Varma, better known as Pazhassi Raja — made famous by superstar Mammootty, who played the lead character in the 2009 Malayala.

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