BJP candidates for the upcoming local body elections pose for a picture with the party’s Kerala unit chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar at its State headquarters, in Thiruvananthapuram, on Sunday. BJP announced its first set of candidates for Thiruvananthapuram Corporation election.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced its first list of candidates for the local body elections for Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, with several high-profile candidates among them. Among the 67 candidates announced by BJP State president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Sunday are former Director General of Police (DGP) R. Sreelekha and athlete Padmini Thomas.
A good number of sitting councillors including V.V. Rajesh, M.R. Gopan, P. Ashokkumar, Ashanath G.S., Karamana Ajith, V.G. Girikumar, Papanamcode Saji and Simi Jyothish will be contesting again, although most of them are switching seats as wards are reserved for women in alternate terms. K. Maheswaran Nair and Thampanoor Satheesh who had shifted from the Congress in recent years have also been accommodated in the initial list. The candidate list has several fresh faces too.
The BJP’s candidate declarations did not go down well with its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ally Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS). Immediately after the announcement, the BDJS district leadership made its displeasure clear and expressed its resolve to contest alone. The BDJS, which had contested in one ward in 2020, had demanded eleven seats this time. However, three of the wards announced on Sunday – Edavacode, Ulloor and Mannanthala – were among the eleven that the party demanded.
Mr. Chandrasekhar said that the 35 councillors of the BJP who had won in 2020 had worked sincerely over the past five years by exposing the corruption-ridden administration of the Left Democratic Front (LDF). “This time, we will request the people to give us an opportunity to turn this city into ‘Vikasita Ananthapuri’,” said Mr. Chandrasekhar.
Past failures
The BJP, which increased its tally from 6 seats in 2010 to 35 in 2015, had hoped to capture power in the Corporation in 2020. However, its tally remained static as the LDF improved its seats from 43 to 51 wards. In the five byelections over this term, the BJP has also failed to win any and also lost one seat. The party is also beset with internal friction after former party spokesperson M.S. Kumar held the party leadership responsible for the death of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation councillor K. Anilkumar, who allegedly committed suicide in September this year following a financial crisis at a cooperative society that he had headed.
Published – November 09, 2025 08:02 pm IST
