The BJP-led NDA won 50 of the 101 wards in the corporation, crossing the majority mark and ending the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) uninterrupted control of the civic body for over four decades. The LDF won 29 wards, while the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) secured 19. With the NDA emerging as the single largest bloc, Sreelekha is being widely seen as the BJP’s frontrunner for the mayor’s post.
Sreelekha, who contested from the Sasthamangalam division, won by a substantial margin. If elected mayor, she would become the BJP’s first mayor in Kerala and the first woman IPS officer-turned-politician to head a municipal corporation in the state.
Born and raised in Thiruvananthapuram, Sreelekha joined the Indian Police Service in 1987, becoming Kerala’s first woman IPS officer. Over a 33-year career, she served in key roles across the CBI, Crime Branch, Vigilance, Fire Force, Motor Vehicles Department and Prisons. In 2017, she became the first woman to be appointed Director General of Police in Kerala. She retired in December 2020 and joined the BJP in 2024.
The result is politically significant as Thiruvananthapuram is considered a stronghold of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. Voting for Kerala’s local bodies was held in two phases on December 9 and 11 across six corporations and 1,199 institutions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated BJP workers, calling the result a milestone for the party’s grassroots efforts in Kerala. The swearing-in of newly elected councillors is scheduled for December 21, after which the mayoral election will be held.
