On October 10, when a 24-year-old woman was admitted to the Government Medical College hospital in Kerala’s Kollam district, she was hesitant to reveal her name. In fact, since March, she has been timid when somebody asked her name. But at the hospital, she not only had to reveal her name — Corona — but she was also diagnosed with COVID-19. "The doctors and nurses joked that they finally found 'corona'. They told me to ask my father to also make a vaccine for this disease," said Corona Thomas, as she shared the funny experience.
Though she was once she ashamed to tell her name, it is everywhere now. She is contesting in upcoming local body elections from Mathilil division of Kollam Corporation as a BJP candidate.
It was her father Thomas Mathew who named her and her twin brother. "Since we were twins, our parents wanted to name us differently. My father found two meaningful names from the dictionary. My brother was named Coral. He named me Corona as it had the meaning 'glow'," she says.
She agreed to contest the election just a few weeks after she and her newborn daughter, Arpitha, tested negative of coronavirus. She was pregnant when she was diagnosed with COVID-19. "My baby, who was born on October 15, was also positive for the virus. We both turned negative on October 25. I started the election campaign just a month after my delivery. I take breaks in between and rush home to feed my baby girl," Corona says.
Incidentally, the 24-year-old candidate has never been a political worker. Her husband Jinu Suresh was a BJP activist. Since the Mathilil division was reserved for women, she stood as the candidate.
Now, Corona says she is not ashamed of her name anymore. In fact, she believes that this name would help her in campaigning and win the election, too.