Denied BJP ticket for Thiruvanthapuram civic polls, party worker commits suicide

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 15 A BJP worker committed suicide here on Saturday, allegedly after being overlooked as a party candidate for the upcoming Thiruvananthapuram municipal elections.

The deceased, identified as Anand K.Thampi, belonged to the Thrikkannapuram ward of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.

The BJP is said to have earlier announced Thampi as its candidate for the ward, but his name did not figure in the final list.

Party leaders said the candidate shortlist had been prepared earlier, and Thampi’s name had "never been included" in the official considerations.

Thampi had then made his intention clear to contest as an independent candidate.

However, his death has triggered discomfort within the local BJP unit, as a WhatsApp message, reportedly sent by Thampi, minutes before his suicide, has now surfaced.

In the message addressed to his friends and also to media houses, Thampi is said to have directly accused BJP leaders of denying his candidature despite his being an active grassroots worker. It also makes allegations against certain BJP and RSS leaders.

He also demands that no BJP or RSS leader be allowed to pay their last respects to him.

After sending the message, he hanged himself at his home, but coming to know of this, his friends, family, and the police rushed him to a hospital in the state capital city in a serious condition. However, in 10 minutes, came the news that he breathed his last.

The development is seen as a setback to the BJP, which was confident of its chances of wresting the prestigious civic body from the Left.

It is currently the principal opposition in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation with 35 members, while the ruling CPI-M-led Left has 51 seats. The Congress-led UDF has only 10 seats.

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