‘Bulldozer Raj’: CPI(M) MLA, BJP councillor spar over office space in Thiruvananthapuram

The saffron party won 50 of the 101 divisions in the city, ending four decades of Left stronghold over the city civic body.

“She contacted me asking to vacate my office. She said the councillor’s office in the same building does not have adequate facilities and that she wants to occupy the space currently used by the MLA,” Prasanth said.

He said his MLA office has been functioning in the building for the past seven years and that earlier a BJP councillor had also used a portion of the same building as an office.

“When I was the Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram, a decision was taken to allow office space for ward councillors. After becoming MLA, I submitted an application to the Corporation and the space was allotted on rent,” he added.

Prasanth said the procedure requires the Corporation Secretary to issue an eviction notice.
“Here, a councillor is directly calling an MLA and demanding eviction. This is like handling things the way it is done in a police station,” he alleged.

He likened the move to “Bulldozer Raj”, claiming that policies adopted by the BJP in some north Indian states were being replicated in Thiruvananthapuram.

When asked whether his office had occupied space meant for the ward councillor, Prasanth admitted that some additional space was being used due to the large number of people visiting his office.

“The councillor’s office is functioning there and a name board has been installed in front of the room. Councillors rarely use the space and mostly function from the Corporation office,” he claimed.

“If the councillor has any complaint, it can be examined. We have the right to function in the allotted space until the agreement period expires,” Prasanth contended.

He said the office has been allotted to him till March 31, 2026, and that he has applied for an extension till the end of the current Assembly term in May next year.

Prasanth said he does not believe the councillor took the decision on her own.

“She may have consulted others before contacting me. I informed her that the space has been allotted till March next year and cannot be vacated before that. If they want immediate eviction, they can take legal steps and we will face it legally,” he said.

Sreelekha later clarified that she had only made a humble request to Prasanth, citing lack of adequate space in the Corporation building.

“I consider him like a brother. I only requested him politely as I do not have enough space to operate my office and meet the public. I requested him to vacate the space, but he objected to it,” she claimed while speaking to reporters.

Sreelekha said she was not aware whether there was any official order allotting the space to the Left legislator and that the matter needed to be verified.

“The MLA has official quarters nearby and can operate an office elsewhere. In my case, though I am the councillor of the Sasthamangalam division, my residence falls in another division. So I need an office here to meet the public,” she said.

Sreelekha said she harboured no personal grudge against Prasanth and continued to regard him as a brother.

“I will set up an office in the building as I need to meet the people,” she said.
Later, Sreelekha met the Left MLA at his office. Both discussed the issue and shook hands.

Later, she said she had no objection to Prasanth continuing to function from the office.
The legislator, in turn, said he had no issue with Sreelekha operating her office in another room in the same building.

Mayor Rajesh said :”They know each other well. Sreelekha explained the space constraints at her office and requested him to vacate the space as the Assembly term is set to end in the coming months,” he said.

There was no need to create any controversy out of the matter, he said, but added that documents related to the renting of the space to the MLA would be examined soon.

“As far as I understand, the space is rented out for Rs 832 per month. It is around 300-350 square feet. The amount is very low compared to prevailing rent rates in the city,” he said.

Meanwhile, minister Sivankutty criticised Sreelekha, calling her action undemocratic and unacceptable, and demanded that the former DGP apologise.

“Without knowing anything about the matter, the Sasthamangalam councillor asked an MLA to vacate his office. She has no right to do so,” Sivankutty claimed.

He alleged that just three days after the BJP came to power in the corporation, it had begun implementing “Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat model steps” by misusing authority.

“There is a government above the corporation, and it has the right to take decisions,” he said.