Thiruvananthapuram: Vattiyoorkavu MLA VK Prasanth has alleged that the demand by BJP's Sasthamangalam councillor R Sreelekha to vacate his office at Sasthamangalam was politically motivated. He said it was inappropriate for the councillor to call an MLA and ask him to vacate an office that the public has been accessing for the past seven years.

Prasanth said he pays rent fixed by the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation to maintain the office and that there are clear legal procedures for eviction. "If the office has to be vacated, the council that allotted the space must first revoke its decision. Only then can the municipal secretary issue a notice seeking eviction," he told the media.

He said the Corporation building houses both the MLA's and the councillor's offices in separate sections. A BJP councillor had earlier used the same councillor's office for five years without raising any complaints, he added. "My office has the right to function in the building until March 31, when the rental agreement expires," he said.

Stating that all elected representatives have the authority and the right to function, Prasanth alleged that this was an attempt to introduce the local version of the "bulldozer raj" practised by the BJP in North Indian states.

Responding to the allegations, Sreelekha on Sunday said the building belongs to the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation and that the municipal body has full authority over its use. She said she shares a close personal rapport with Prasanth.

"VK Prasanth is like a brother to me. When I was the police chief, he was the Mayor, and we worked together. I have no personal issues with him," she said. 

Sreelekha said she had been trying to contact Prasanth for the past two days. "On Saturday, former councillor Madusoodanan Nair told me that we need better office space. After that, I called Prasanth and explained that I do not have enough space in the councillor's office. I requested him to consider vacating the MLA office," she said.

According to her, Prasanth refused, saying he had time until the end of the Assembly term. "I again requested him, like an elder sister, saying there was no urgency and that he could take his time, but I asked him to consider shifting. He still said no," she said, adding that she repeated the request three times.

She said the MLA office pays rent only because the building belongs to the Corporation. "If it were his own building, he would not be paying rent. That itself shows that the Corporation has full rights over the property," she said.

Sreelekha said she approached Prasanth purely in a personal capacity and not through any official action. "I spoke to him as a sister, not as a councillor issuing a directive. We will discuss the matter with the party leadership and the Mayor and decide the next course of action," she said.

She also pointed out that while an MLA can set up an office anywhere within the constituency, a ward councillor has limited options for office space. "That is why I made the request," she said.