THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Newly elected BJP councillors of the Thiruvananthapuram city corporation, along with representatives from various local self-government institutions from Thiruvananthapuram district, left for New Delhi on Monday following a special invitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The delegation led by Mayor V V Rajesh departed from Thampanoor railway station aboard the Kerala Express. BJP state general secretary Adv V Suresh flagged off the journey in the presence of party leaders and workers.
The councillors are scheduled to meet the prime minister at his official residence on Thursday. As part of the programme, the team will visit the Parliament to familiarise themselves with parliamentary procedures and the functioning of national governance.
The absence of councillor R Sreelekha in the delegation raised eyebrows. In a social media post, R Sreelekha clarified that she couldn’t travel with the delegation owing to health issues and didn’t want to take a flight to avoid unnecessary expenses.
Mayor Rajesh said the visit is aimed at providing first-hand exposure to democratic functioning at the national level and helping local body representatives gain a deeper understanding of governance practices that can be applied at the grassroots.
Receptions have been arranged for the delegation at several railway stations along the route across Kerala and other states. Former Union minister V Muraleedharan, BJP city unit president Karamana Jayan, senior leaders, and a large number of party workers were present at Thampanoor to see them off.
Party leaders said the interaction in Delhi would help strengthen the implementation of central schemes and support urban development initiatives at the local level.