Former Keralam chief secretary Jiji Thomson alleges Gyanesh Kumar suggested BJP ticket

Thomson said the suggestion was made in 2016 during a flight to New Delhi, when both he and Kumar were serving in govt service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Former chief secretary Jiji Thomson has alleged that chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had suggested in 2016 that he join the BJP after retiring from the civil service and contest the Lok Sabha elections on the party’s ticket.Thomson said the suggestion was made in 2016 during a flight to New Delhi, when both he and Kumar were serving in govt service. He claimed Kumar told him that he could become a Union minister if he won.Thomson said he rejected the proposal, saying that he had no interest in entering electoral politics. He said he was particularly surprised that such a suggestion came from Kumar while he was himself serving as a senior govt official.The disclosure comes against the backdrop of Thomson’s long career in the civil service. A 1980-batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre, he served as chief secretary from Jan 2015 to Feb 2016 before retiring from the IAS. He had also held several senior positions in the state and at Centre, including director general of Sports Authority of India and managing director of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation.Thomson had also been approached by political leaders in the past to enter electoral politics. In 2021, he said Congress leaders had suggested that he contest the assembly elections from Vattiyoorkavu, but he turned down the proposal.