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Thiruvananthapuram News

The New Indian Express News

Thiruvananthapuram / The New Indian Express

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LDF plan to corner BJP over members suicides backfires

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day after the local body election results, a flex appeared at Thirumala junction We dedicate this victory to our Ani chettan. The person mentioned was Thirumala Anil, a BJP councillor who died by suicide due to financial issues in the cooperative bank he led, two months before the local body polls. However, despite ambiguity over who the voters would choose, the public decided to side with the BJP. Even in neighbouring Thrikkannapuram ward, where BJP member Anand K Thampi ended his life after he was denied a seat, the party gave a fierce competition to LDF, clearly indicating that the LDFs campaign to cash in on the suicides for political mileage backfired miserably. Both suicides took place in the Nemom assembly constituency, represented by General Education Minister V Sivankutty. Though Sivankutty made prompt efforts to express condolences and raised demand for a special probe into the suicides, CPMs efforts to project BJP as a cruel outfit didnt cut ice with voters due to multiple reasons. In fact, the issue didnt figure in door-to-door campaigning at all. Anil, who had been contesting in Thirumala and Thrikkannapuram wards since 2010, was a public figure dear to people irrespective of political affiliations. He entered the council from Thrikkannapuram ward in 2015 and from Thirumala in 2020. In spite of Anils final statement that the party didnt support him in times of crisis, BJP chose not to target him. In the election, BJP fielded P S Devima, the sitting councillor from neighbouring Valiyavila ward, in Thirumala. Not only did the party acknowledge Anils contributions, but also projected Devima as his successor through announcements, helping her secure a win with over 800 votes. On the other hand, BJP managed to ride over the issues raised by Anand during campaigning in Thrikkannapuram ward, but lost to LDF by a small margin. While Anand, in his suicide note, alleged that key BJP leaders in the ward had close ties with the soil mafia, CPM failed to take up the issue. However, the trend indicates BJP is improving its standing in the area, which falls under the assembly constituency from where BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has announced he will contest in the 2026 assembly elections.

17 Dec 2025 8:33 am