Newly elected BJP councillors from Thiruvananthapuram head for Delhi on PM Modi's invitation

Thiruvananthapuram: Newly elected BJP councillors of the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation and other civic body representatives in the state left for Delhi on Monday at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The delegation, led by Mayor V V Rajesh, departed by the Kerala Express from here amid intense sloganeering by a large number of party workers gathered at the railway station.

According to party sources, the elected representatives are scheduled to meet PM Modi at his official residence on the evening of February 12.


The delegation will also visit the residence of Union Minister George Kurian, Rajesh told reporters here before embarking on the journey.

The Delhi tour would be utilised to gain first-hand knowledge and training on higher-level democratic mechanisms, the mayor said.

He added that discussions would also be held with union ministers on ways to further improve development in Thiruvananthapuram and across Kerala.

The delegation is also scheduled to visit Parliament to gain a first-hand understanding of its procedures, he said.

BJP sources said the visit would provide a major boost to taking Central government schemes to the grassroots level and strengthening various development initiatives.

Several councillors expressed happiness over the PM's invitation, describing it as a "rare opportunity".

However, the absence of former DGP-turned BJP councillor R Sreelekha from the Delhi trip sparked widespread discussion. There was speculation that she had skipped the visit due to differences of opinion with the BJP's state leadership.

Later in the day, Sreelekha issued a clarification dismissing the speculation. In a video message, she said it would be difficult for her to undertake a three-day train journey.

She added that although the party leadership had offered to book a flight ticket for her, she declined as she did not wish to incur unnecessary expenditure.