The Left Democratic Front (LDF) will win 75 seats in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation in the upcoming local body elections, CPI(M) leader and Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has said.
Mr. Sivankutty, Minister in-charge of Thiruvananthapuram district, stated that the Corporation’s development works have received awards from the BJP-led Union government. However, BJP State unit president Rajeev Chandrasekhar seemed to be unaware of this when he levelled allegation of corruption against the LDF. “The charges levelled by him show his political bankruptcy.”
Mr. Sivankutty alleged that Mr. Chandrasekhar was making these claims since the BJP’s defeat in the Corporation was a certainty. “The BJP will lose more than half of its sitting seats.”
His remarks also raised questions of what the BJP councillors in the Corporation were doing in the last five years and why were the corruption allegations being raised now. It also begged the question why central investigation agencies did not investigate the civic body all this time. “Let Mr. Chandrasekhar recommend the Union government to withdraw the awards and accolades received by city Corporation,” Mr. Sivankutty said.
He further alleged that Mr. Chandrasekhar was not even aware of the schemes in connection with which he had levelled allegations and claimed that he would have them investigated. Some of the schemes go back to 1995 when he [Mr. Sivankutty] was the Mayor. “He needs to make it clear on what basis he made these claims.”
‘40% commission’
Mr. Chandrasekhar raised the charge of ‘40% commission’, Mr. Sivankutty said, adding that people had begun referring to the BJP State president as ‘Mr. 40 percentage’ as a joke.
Mr. Chandraksehar, he quipped, is a self-proclaimed candidate from the Nemom constituency and has begun public a relations exercise. However, he did not have any connect with the people.
“Many serious allegations of corruption have been raised against Mr. Chandrasekhar. It is our decency that we have not spoken about it so far,” he said.
Mr. Sivankutty said he would ask the Chief Minister to constitute a special team to investigate the death of a BJP councillor and a party member in Thiruvananthapuram recently. “Mr. Chandrasekhar is silent about these deaths. He too is responsible since the families of those who died had handed over complaints to him,” Mr. Sivankutty alleged.
Published – December 06, 2025 09:04 pm IST
