The spirit of a keenly contested local body election remained suspended in the air, as the otherwise solemn occasion of swearing in of new councillors in the city Corporation council hall on Monday was also noted for the competing sloganeering from supporters of the various parties in the thickly packed hall. While a majority of the hundred councillors solemnly affirmed or took oath in the name of God, six councillors deviated from the script and took oaths in name of specific gods, while an LDF councillor also used the occasion to raise a slogan in solidarity with the farmers’ protests in Delhi.
District Collector Navjot Khosa administered the oath to the senior-most member, P. Ashok Kumar of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who in turn administered the oath to the rest of the 99 members. Left Democratic Front councillor S. Jayachandran Nair of the Kudappanakkunnu ward who had tested positive for COVID-19, came in last, wearing a Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kit.
In wheelchair
LDF councillor R. Surakumari of the Kinavoor ward, who came in a wheelchair after hurting her leg during campaigning, was the only one not to go up on the dais for the swearing in, as she took oath from her seat. BJP councillor Karamana Ajith took the oath in the name of Lord Ayyappa, while NDA Independent councillor Janaki Ammal took the oath in the name of Sree Padmanabhaswamy and the deity Gomathi Amman.
Independent councillor Mary Jypsy of the Poonthura ward took the oath in the name of Thomasleeha (St. Thomas), while Independent councillor M. Nizamudeen of Harbour ward and INL councillor Muhammad Basheer of Manikyavilakom ward took oath in the name of Allah.
At the end of his oath, LDF councillor R. Unnikrishnan of Attukal ward chanted “farmers’ protest zindabad, long live martyrs”. BJP councillor P.V. Manju of Punnakkamughal uttered her oath completely in Sanskrit.
Though the District Collector has stipulated that only a relative or a member of the political party can accompany an elected member for the swearing-in ceremony in view of the prevailing COVID-19 protocols, the area surrounding the council hall was filled to the brim with supporters of the various political parties.
Silent UDF camp
The LDF and the BJP supporters competed with each other in sloganeering, as each of their candidates walked in for the oath-taking, even as the UDF candidates walked in almost in silence, as there were hardly any supporters in the hall, somewhat reflective of their reduced strength in the council too. At a point, a group of BJP workers chanted “Jai Shri Ram,” prompting vociferous slogans for secularism from the LDF camp. The sloganeering at times did not stop even during the oath-taking, prompting the Collector to request the supporters to maintain decorum.
The Corporation council will convene again on December 28 to elect the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor.
