THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On a day when prosaicness played second fiddle, 139 legislators elected to the 16th Kerala assembly took the oath of office on Thursday in a ceremony that was as colourful as it was cordial.
Of the lot, 101 were from the UDF, 35 from the LDF and three from the NDA. They were administered the oath in the presence of G Sudhakaran, who was appointed pro tem speaker after being sworn in as MLA on Wednesday, and relatives and party members, who flocked the galleries.
Resembling a college re-opening day where many look to stand out from the rest, Puthuppally MLA Chandy Oommen arrived riding his hybrid electric cycle. Adding sparkle to the solemn occasion, Chandy wore black track pants and a white t-shirt embossed with the image of his father, Oommen Chandy.
The BJP MLAs reached the assembly in a celebratory march from Martyrs’ Column, while IUML members clocked in with their family members and party workers.
V E Abdul Gafoor, who represents Kalamassery, was the first to be inaugurated, and was followed by his IUML colleague Parakkal Abdulla, who represents Kuttiady. CPI’s C Ajayaprasad, representing Punalur, was the first opposition member to be officially inducted.
Congress’ Aluva MLA Anwar Sadath paid his gratitude to the people of his constituency while taking oath, while A K M Ashraf of Manjeshwar took oath in Kannada. Congress’ Devikulam MLA F Raja took to Tamil. IUML’s Fyzal Babu was the first to take oath in English, followed by Ramesh Chennithala, Mathew Kuzhalnadan, Sunny Joseph, K Muraleedharan, Mani C Kappan, Sandeep Varrier, Ramesh Pisharody and Shibu Baby John.
Having won a comfortable majority, UDF members reserved thunderous applause for former CPM leaders and UDF-backed independent MLAs T K Govindan and V P Kunhikrishnan, who had breached the Left citadels of Taliparamba and Payyannur; Vadakara’s K K Rema, and Chief Minister V D Satheesan. As Satheesan entered the well, spectators gave a standing ovation.
But the excitement was far from over. With the reverberations of the row over Satheesan using his caste name while being sworn in as chief minister still echoing, he refused to be bogged down and did an encore. “I, Vadassery Damodaran Menon Satheesan,” he read out, probably adding fuel to a controversy that could blow up in the coming days.
Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan’s interaction with G Sudhakaran after his induction drew attention. Climbing on to the dias to complete the customary proceedings, Pinarayi was greeted by Sudhakaran, who emerged from behind his desk to shake hands. They tapped each other’s shoulders.
Pinarayi later greeted all the ministers and a few opposition leaders. Pinarayi crossed paths with Rema, who stood up, but the two did not lock eyes nor exchange handshakes. However, Pinarayi shook hands with Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who was sitting beside her.
Sartorial standouts
While white mundu and white or light-coloured shirts dominated, changes were evident in the sartorial taste of the new generation of politicians. As many as five MLAs were spotted wearing trousers.
Apart from Chandy Oommen’s track pants, Kuzhalnadan was spotted wearing black trousers with his shirt tucked in. IUML’s P K Navas wore grey trousers and a white shirt, while CPI’s Muhammed Muhassin P wore a light blue shirt and beige pants. Actor-politician Ramesh Pisharody, of the Congress, was the most colourful in black trousers and brown shirt.
Kunhalikutty seated next to Satheesan; Balagopal, Rajeev in front row
Beyond the shift of Chief Minister V D Satheesan from the left to the right end of the assembly hall, the seating arrangements also sparked curiosity among the visitors. IUML leader P K Kunhalikutty sat beside Satheesan, followed by Ramesh Chennithala, Mons Joseph, K Muraleedharan, RSP’s Shibu Baby John, KC(J)’s Anoop Jacob, CMP’s C P John, A P Anilkumar and N Samsudheen.
Mani C Kappan followed by K K Rema, Apu John Joseph, Shanimol Osman, N Shakthan and Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan were on the first row. From LDF, Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan sat on the leftmost seat in the opposition block. Beside him sat K N Balagopal and CPI’s K Rajan. Among BJP MLAs, Rajeev Chandrasekhar was seated in the front row, while V Muraleedharan and B B Gopakumar sat in the rows behind.
Star-struck, overflowing galleries
Returning to power after a decade, senior UDF leaders marked their presence in the assembly hall’s VIP gallery, making the swearing-in ceremony a celebration. AICC general secretary in-charge Deepa Dasmunsi, senior leader K C Joseph, MPs Shafi Parambil and V K Sreekandan, and RSP MP N K Premachandran were some of the prominent faces from the ruling front in the VIP gallery.
Celebrating their historic win in the assembly chamber, top BJP leaders, including former state president P K Krishnadas and deputy mayor G S Asha Nath, were also present. Notably, LDF stalwarts were absent. From the Left, senior CPI leader E Chandrasekharan was present. Day one also saw visitors’ galleries overflowing with party workers and families of the legislators.
Sandeep Varier holds up Constitution
In what resembled a Lok Sabha swearing-in ceremony, UDF’s Trikaripur MLA Sandeep Varier held the pocket version of the Constitution as he took oath. The former BJP leader also shouted ‘Jai Hind’ and ‘Jai Samvidhaan’ after his oath. He also gave a formal handshake to BJP state chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar.
V P Sajeendran dons Gandhi cap
Amongst the 139 seated MLAs in the assembly hall, one face stood out: Kunnathunad MLA V P Sajeendran sat facing the photo of Mahatma Gandhi, wearing a Gandhi cap. The Congress MLA wore the cap while taking the oath and throughout the session.
Mohammed Shah new addl advocate general
Kochi: Adv Mohammed Shah P A has been appointed additional advocate general of Kerala. The appointment comes after the government accepted the resignations of Additional Advocates General K P Jayachandran and Ashok M Cherian. The order was issued on Wednesday.
K M Shaji opts for ‘unlucky’ no 13
T’Puram: LSGD Minister K M Shaji on Thursday claimed the vehicle designated number 13, while dropping his vehicle with number 9. Shaji’s old vehicle will now be used by Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala. Notably, a video of Shaji’s allies telling him, “We don’t want the number 9 car”, had earlier been circulated on social media. Car number 13 is often not opted for by ministers due to the belief that it is ‘unlucky’.
Speaker election today
T’Puram: The election of the speaker of the 16th legislative assembly will be held on Friday. For the first time, the election will see the participation of the BJP in addition to the UDF and LDF. The ruling UDF with 102 members has fielded Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan as its speaker candidate while the 35-member LDF bloc has A C Moideen as its candidate. BJP, with three MLAs, has fielded Chathannoor MLA B B Gopakumar as its candidate.