85-year-old BJP leader O Rajagopal tries his luck in Kerala by-election

Follow us:WhatsappFacebookTwitterTelegram.cls-1{fill:#4d4d4d;}.cls-2{fill:#fff;}Google NewsThiruvananthapuram: The by-election to the Aruvikarra constituency in Kerala has become a strong battle field with the BJP having its senior leader O Rajagopal in the field. The Left candidate is former Speaker and Minister M Vijayakumar and the UDF candidate is Sabarinadhan, son of the late speaker G Karthikeyan.

It was after the death of G Karthikeyan that the seat fell vacant. The by-election is on June 27. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections O Rajagopal had given a tough competition to Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.

But Rajagopal has never won an election from his home state of Kerala.

Speaking to CNN-IBN, 85-year-old Rajagopal said, "The chances are better this time. After meeting people in the constituency that is the feeling I get. The central issue in Kerala in this election is that of the numerous allegations of corruption. In the Cabinet there are six ministers facing vigilance cases. In all of these criminal activities the central figure is chief minister himself."

"This information came out from PC George when he was the chief whip of the government. He has been telling from the beginning, the epicentre of corruption is CM's office. Many associated with the CM's office are not accused and some are in jail. On one side we find charges of corruption against the ruling front and the opposition is inefficient, they themselves are involved in corruption. People also suspect understanding between the LDF and UDF leaders when LDF is in power they protect the UDF leaders and when UDF is in power they protect the LDF leaders. There is no sincere, honest, efficient fight against corruption," he said.

Describing himself as the most honest man in the fray, he said, "They may disagree with me on my political stand but no one has any grievance of corruption against me, I was a minister and was in public life for 50 years. Not a single allegation. They all agree I have done a lot for Kerala. Tough the regional media and the Congress create a propaganda against Modi the people here know, through their relatives friends in other countries how they view the new Indian government."

"Though people may say Modi has not fulfilled his promises, there is enough time to do that. One thing that stands out is that there is no single allegation of corruption against Modi govt. when here in Kerala corruption is the major issue and the other party is colluding with the corruption."

In 1989 Rajagopal had contested for a Lok Sabha seat from Manjeri. Two years later, in 1991 from Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency. He lost both the polls. He was elected in 1992 and 1998 to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh. He was a Minister of State in the AB Vajpayee led-NDA government at the Centre.

In 1999 he once again attempted a second run from Thiruvananthapuram, but failed again. In the 2011 Assembly elections he contested from the Nemom constituency in Thiruvananthapuram. He lost the by-election from Neyyattinkara constituency, which was held on June 2, 2012.About the AuthorNeethu Reghukumar Kerala Correspondent...Read Morefirst published:June 09, 2015, 15:47 ISTlast updated:June 09, 2015, 15:47 IST
window._taboola = window._taboola || [];_taboola.push({mode: 'thumbnails-mid-article',container: 'taboola-mid-article-thumbnails',placement: 'Mid Article Thumbnails',target_type: 'mix'});
let eventFire = false;
window.addEventListener('scroll', () => {
if (window.taboolaInt && !eventFire) {
setTimeout(() => {
ga('send', 'event', 'Mid Article Thumbnails', 'PV');
ga('set', 'dimension22', "Taboola Yes");
}, 4000);
eventFire = true;
}
});
 
window._taboola = window._taboola || [];_taboola.push({mode: 'thumbnails-a', container: 'taboola-below-article-thumbnails', placement: 'Below Article Thumbnails', target_type: 'mix' });Latest News