00:00And well, a historic breakthrough for the BJP in Kerala politics.
00:03For the first time ever, the party has clinched the mayor's post in Thiruvananthapuram,
00:08marking a decisive shift in the state's urban political landscape
00:11and dealing a major blow to the left.
00:14V.V. Rajesh has been elected mayor of Thiruvananthapuram with 51 votes in his favour.
00:20CM Pinaray Vijayan called V.V. Rajesh and conveyed his wishes over a phone call.
00:24GS Asha Nath has been elected as the deputy mayor,
00:27a leadership combination that underscores the party's growing confidence
00:31after this landmark civic victory.
00:33In the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation polls, the NDA surged to 50 seats,
00:37up sharply from 35 in 2020, while the ruling LDFs lived to 29 seats,
00:43losing its long-held dominance in the state capital.
00:46This result has completely altered the political arithmetic.
00:50In the 2020 Kerala Assembly elections, the BJP failed to open its account
00:54even as the LDF swept the state.
00:57Five years on, the civic poll verdict signals changing voter moods,
01:01especially in urban Kerala.
01:03Now, all eyes are on whether the BJP can turn this historic civic win
01:07into momentum ahead of the Kerala Assembly polls.
01:10What are your dreams for the city?
01:15There are many issues that you have addressed during the election campaign also.
01:17So, what is the biggest Thiruvananthapuram that you are aiming at?
01:20We are going to solve the basic problems of the cities and the people
01:23and I think that this is the first time in India
01:25that the Prime Ministers are giving assurance to a city
01:29that the Government of India is going to monitor the development of the city
01:34and within 45 days after the counting of the votes,
01:38Narendra Modiji will be coming to Trivanda to address the Trivanda Corporation.
01:42So, what are the main challenges that you are foreseeing
01:45as the Mayor of Thiruvananthapuram in the coming days?
01:47To solve the basic problems,
01:48that means the waste management system
01:51and the stray dogs issues and the flood issue.
01:54That's the basic problems.
01:55So, there are so many opportunities in Trivanda,
01:59especially we explained before the people that spiritual tourism,
02:04there is a lot of opportunities in Trivanda,
02:07in spiritual tourism, medical tourism,
02:09the poor building and poor development, IT sector.
02:11That's our first priority matters.
02:14One more question.
02:15You know, it's a huge moment for the party.
02:17Do you think this is the moment that's going to change
02:19the BJP's electoral fortunes in the state of Kerala?
02:21Definitely, this is the starting point.
02:23We are going to implement this same method throughout Kerala.
02:26Our wonderful state person, Dayu Chandrachar,
02:28they already said it.
02:29Huge moment, historical moment for the BJP in Kerala.
02:32It's elected first BJP Mayor in the state.
02:35What does this moment mean to the party, sir?
02:37It is a very big moment for not just the party or the NDA.
02:42It is a big moment for the people of Trivandrum and Trivandrum
02:45because for 45 years, please understand,
02:47the CPM ideology and the CPM carders governed or ruled Trivandrum
02:53or misruled, if you want to call it that way.
02:56Today, we are so proud because the five original councillors of BJP
03:02who won in 1987, they were here today to see this epic moment.
03:07And 37 years later, 37 years ago,
03:11there were just five BJP members in the Trivandrum Corporation.
03:14That went to three, that went to one, that became zero.
03:17Then it went to 15 and 35 and 35 and now 50.
03:20So it is a very historic moment in the growth of our party,
03:23evolution of our party.
03:24And we are very, very, very deeply grateful
03:26to the people of Trivandrum to give us an opportunity to govern
03:29and to show them what development really is.
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