Thiruvananthapuram: The BDJS threat not to cooperate with the BJP in the Chengannur by-election has unnerved the state leadership as its candidate P.S. Sreedharan Pillai will not be able to put up a good fight without the BDJS support.

The state leaders know that the BJP’s vote share will plunge in the emerging situation. In the 2016 Assembly elections, Mr Sreedharan Pillai had polled 42, 682 votes which was 29 percent of the total votes.





The ‘Hindu’ votes might go in favour of Congress candidate D. Vijayakumar who is the national vice-president of Akhila Bharatha Ayyappa Seva Sangham and enjoys wide acceptance among the locals.

But a BJP leader told DC that all was not lost as the BDJS had not decided to cut its ties with the NDA. “They are using pressure tactics to get their demands conceded. National president Amit Shah is dilly-dallying on the promises made to the BDJS leadership about appointments to the central boards,” he said.

There are dissenting voices in the party against Mr V. Muraleedharan who has filed his nomination papers to the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra. It is said that he wanted to cut Mr Sreedharan Pillai to size and restrict him to state politics.
“Sreedharan Pillai’s mentor and Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu had promised to get him a Rajya Sabha seat under the eminent personality quota.

Pillai feels that he has been cheated by Muraleedheran,” a top BJP leader said.
It is alleged that there is collusion between Mr Muraleedharan and Mr B.L. Santhosh, national joint general secretary (organising), who helped him in lobbying for the Rajya Sabha seat.

BDJS leader Thushar Vellapally had also cast aspersions on some Kozhikode-based BJP leaders who played “political games” against the BDJS.

When Mr Muraleedharan was given a reception at Thiruvananthapuram airport on Wednesday on his return from Mumbai, most of the BJP leaders were absent. Only state president Kummanam Rajasekharan, O. Rajagopal MLA and state general secretary K. Surendran attended it.