Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 6: Former IPS officer and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor R. Sreelekha on Monday said the party had promised to make her the Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram but later changed the decision at the last minute.
In an interview to a YouTube channel, *Kerala Today*, on January 5, Sreelekha said she was fielded in the local body elections with the understanding that she would be made Mayor and not merely a councillor. She said her name was projected as the BJP’s mayoral candidate throughout the campaign and until the final stages.
“I was fielded in the local body elections, not just to make me a councillor but with a promise that I would be the Mayor,” she said.
Sreelekha said she was initially reluctant to contest the elections and agreed only after being persuaded by the party leadership. “Until the last minute, my name was being mentioned as a Mayor candidate. However, due to unknown reasons, things changed at the last minute,” she said.
According to her, the BJP’s central leadership later felt that former district president V.V. Rajesh would be a better choice for the Mayor’s post, while Asha Nath was selected as Deputy Mayor.
“As per my understanding, the Central leadership probably felt that V.V. Rajesh might be a better bet as Mayor and Asha as a better deputy Mayor,” she said.
Sreelekha said she accepted the party’s decision and chose to continue as a councillor out of a sense of responsibility to the electorate. “I can’t discontinue and run away, as there are people who made me win the election. I accepted the decision and decided to continue as a councillor for the five years, as I am committed to the people who voted for me,” she added.
After her remarks triggered a political controversy, Sreelekha clarified that she was not dissatisfied and was only narrating the sequence of events that led to the decision. She also said she had no information regarding speculation about her candidature in future Assembly elections.
Sreelekha won the Sasthalamgalam ward of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, defeating CPI(M) candidate Amrita R by a margin of 708 votes. The BJP emerged as the single largest party in the 101-member civic body with 50 seats. Subsequently, V.V. Rajesh was elected Mayor and Asha Nath was chosen as Deputy Mayor.
Sreelekha was the first woman IPS officer from the Kerala cadre, having joined the service in 1987. She retired in 2020 and later joined the BJP.
