The Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation is holding its first council meeting with the newly elected representatives in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday. | Photo credit: NIRMAL HARINDRAN
The heat of the recently concluded local body elections spilled over into the first meeting of the newly elected Thiruvananthapuram Corporation Council as the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) questioned the propriety of the 20 councilors who were issued notices by the Kerala High Court on their oaths taking part in the council. LDF council president SPDeepak, who is the petitioner in the case, said 20 councilors belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) who took oath in the name of various deities instead of swearing in the name of God or through a solemn declaration, violated municipal rules. According to him, the councilors cannot participate in the council until the court has the final word on it. Mayor VVRajesh said that no action can be taken against the councilors unless the High Court issues an order in the case. The issue briefly led to heated exchanges between councilors on both sides. When the programs of the day were discussed, LDF Councilors K.Sreekumar and Vanchiyoor Babu alleged that the supplementary program of the Standing Committee on Development presented by Standing Committee Chairman Karamana Ajith was not provided to all councilors in advance. The supplementary agenda consisted of 93 revision projects as well as projects that were discarded for various reasons. UDF councilor KSSabarinadhan raised an issue regarding the recent ward delimitations that have left at least 12 wards with a population of more than 10,000 while others have much smaller numbers. He said this could lead to problems in selecting beneficiaries for various welfare projects as all departments are equally allocated funds. During the planning process, he requested a special package for these departments. Mr Rajesh said the demand would be considered. The mayor said that a tender process has been launched for the purchase of 101 vehicles for Haritha Karma Sena in all wards. In addition, five trucks will also be purchased. At the start of the council meeting, UDF councilor KH Sudheer Khan from Vizhinjam ward was sworn in.
Published – 21 Jan 2026 20:46 IST
