6 months ago
2
Newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor R. Sreelekha’s request to Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] MLA V.K. Prasanth to vacate his bureau astatine Sasthamangalam successful the superior kicked up a tempest connected Sunday (December 28, 2025). Mr. Prasanth, who represents the Vattiyurkavu constituency, termed the request politically motivated and said that determination was nary question of vacating the gathering arsenic helium had paid the rent till March 31 adjacent twelvemonth to the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, which owns the building.
After the contented flared up, Ms. Sreelekha, erstwhile Director General of Police (DGP), visited Mr. Prasanth astatine his bureau astir Sunday noon and said that she had lone made a affable petition considering the inadequacies of the abstraction allotted for the Sasthamangalam councillor successful the aforesaid building.
According to Mr. Prasanth, helium received the telephone from Ms. Sreelekha connected Saturday morning. He said that the building, which besides houses the wellness ellipse bureau of the Corporation, was renovated during his word arsenic the Mayor from 2015-19. The hallway wrong the gathering was partitioned to location the Vattiyurkavu MLA arsenic good arsenic the Sasthamangalam councillor’s office. The erstwhile 2 councillors, including Left Democratic Front (LDF) councillor Bindu Sreekumar and BJP councillor Madhusoodhanan Nair, had occupied the abstraction allocated for them.
Council decision
“It’s inappropriate for a councillor to assertion that the facilities are insufficient and request the MLA to vacate the space. How has the MLA’s bureau being located present abruptly go an inconvenience aft astir 7 years? The abstraction was allocated for the MLA bureau arsenic per a determination of the council. I person paid the rent till March 31 and person besides requested for an hold till the extremity of the word successful May. If the Corporation is readying to forcibly vacate the office, it volition beryllium dealt with politically and legally,” said Mr. Prasanth.
Appearing to onslaught a conciliatory enactment aft the contention broke out, Ms. Sreelekha that she sees Mr. Prasanth arsenic a member and had nary idiosyncratic issues with him. She said that the ward councillor’s options for bureau abstraction are constricted portion an MLA tin acceptable up an bureau anyplace wrong the constituency.
Mayor V.V. Rajesh said that determination was nary request to politicise a petition which was made connected a cordial note. Ms. Sreelekha had made the petition due to the fact that she shares a idiosyncratic rapport with the MLA. He hinted that the assembly mightiness person a relook astatine the rent rates for the bureau abstraction arsenic per the rates prevalent successful the city.
Minister for Local Self Governments M.B. Rajesh said that Ms. Sreelekha’s request is reflective of the BJP’s anti-democratic and intolerant mindset. “It is simply a informing that the superior metropolis volition person to endure specified behaviour for the coming 5 years,” helium said. General Education Minister V. Sivankutty said that Ms. Sreelekha had nary specified powers to marque demands to an MLA. “This is the benignant of autocratic mindset which is prevalent nether the BJP successful Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh,” helium said.
