The Kerala High Court has issued notices to 20 BJP councillors in Thiruvananthapuram Corporation regarding their oath-taking process. The court noted that the councillors took their oath in the names of multiple deities instead of following the prescribed procedure of swearing in the name of God as per municipal rules. This action has raised concerns about the validity of the oath as per statutory requirements.
The court criticized the deviation from the standard oath format, emphasizing that the oath’s validity is pending a final decision. While the court did not grant interim relief to stop the councillors from participating in council meetings or receiving honorarium, it acknowledged the petition filed by CPI-M leader and councillor S.P. Deepak. The petitioner argued that the BJP councillors’ oath-taking violated the Kerala Municipality Act and the official oath format.
The petition specifically highlighted instances during the oath-taking ceremony, such as BJP councillor Jaya Rajeev swearing in the name of Lord Ayyappa and Karamana Ajith taking the oath in Sanskrit. Notably, BJP councillor R. Sreelakha, a former state police chief, left the dais after chanting “Vande Mataram” following the oath. The court also raised concerns about the decorum of the ceremony, as BJP workers sang the RSS Gana Geetham inside the Corporation Council Hall.
The High Court has summoned the councillors mentioned in the petition, including G.S. Ashanath, Chembazhathi Udayan, and R. Sugathan, to respond to the alleged violations. The court will proceed with the case after receiving responses from the concerned councillors.
