Minister V. Sivankutty Questions Exclusion of Thiruvananthapuram Mayor from PM’s Welcome Ceremony
Minister V. Sivankutty has strongly condemned the exclusion of the Thiruvananthapuram City Corporation Mayor from the reception ceremony for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating it is a grave insult to the people of Thiruvananthapuram and federal courtesies.
In a scathing Facebook post, Sivankutty questioned the reasons behind Mayor V.V. Rajesh’s absence from the official list of dignitaries welcoming the Prime Minister. He highlighted the BJP’s prior claims during election campaigns that a BJP-led Thiruvananthapuram Corporation would see its Mayor officially welcome the Prime Minister at the airport. “However, when the Prime Minister arrived, the Mayor was not on that list,” Sivankutty noted, asking whether it was due to a lack of ‘status’ for Rajesh or internal groupism within the BJP. He dismissed any potential explanations as unsatisfactory.
Sivankutty also challenged the BJP to produce the “development blueprint” for Thiruvananthapuram that they had promised the Prime Minister would personally announce within 45 days. He accused the BJP of consistently failing to fulfill election promises.
Furthermore, the Minister criticized the Central Government for imposing what he termed a “financial blockade” on the state, stifling its development. He revealed that the Centre has withheld a staggering Rs 1,148.13 crore from the Samagra Shiksha Fund designated for schools in Kerala. Sivankutty emphasized that this is not merely a statistic but an issue directly impacting the future of Kerala’s children. He also pointed out that the Centre denied deserved assistance during the Wayanad disaster and dismissed allegations that the state is not implementing central schemes as “blatant lies.”
Sivankutty articulated his belief that BJP leaders at the Centre tend to evaluate Kerala using models from states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, failing to acknowledge Kerala’s advanced educational infrastructure. He asserted that Kerala boasts the country’s best network of public schools, with many government schools far superior to PM Shri schools.
Concluding his statement, Minister Sivankutty demanded that the Central Government cease its actions of undermining development by withholding deserving funds from Kerala. He urged the Centre to address the neglect in railway development and to immediately release the withheld education funds, affirming that the state will continue to advocate for its rights.