Mahila Congress leader R. Reshmi has joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). She accepted BJP membership from the party’s State president Rajeev Chandrasekhar here on Saturday.
There was speculation over the past several days about her moving closer to the BJP. Ms. Reshmi was the UDF candidate against Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal in the Kottarakara constituency the 2021 State Assembly elections.
On Saturday, Ms. Reshmi said she had decided to part ways with the Congress, of which she had been a member for 20 years, due to certain “bad experineces” following the last Assembly polls. Ms. Reshmi’s move to the BJP also comes amid reports that P. Aisha Potti, the former CPI(M) MLA who had joined the Congress, would contest as the UDF candidate in Kottarakara in the 2026 Assembly polls. Mr. Chandrasekhar indicated that Ms. Reshmi would be a candidate in the upcoming elections.
Published – February 21, 2026 09:30 pm IST
