Lone BJP MLA Rajagopal votes for LDF in Kerala Speaker election

The first legislator of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Kerala Assembly has voted for the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the Speaker election held on Thursday. 

O Rajagopal, the BJP MLA from Nemom, said at a press briefing after electing the new Speaker of the Kerala Assembly that he voted for the LDF nominee P Sreeramakrishnan.

"On the eve of the Speaker election, Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala declared that his front does not want BJP's vote. Hence, I didn't want to hurt his sentiments," Rajagopal said in a lighter tone. "Though Sreeramakrishnan belongs to the LDF, he is a good friend and represents the youths, and I chose to vote for him," the BJP leader explained. 

"His name is a special one. It has Sreeram and Krishnan, and I liked it," Rajagopal justified his decision to vote for Sreeramakirishnan. The veteran BJP leader also clarified that he had not consulted his party before taking the decision. 

With the clarification from the BJP legislator, it has become evident now that the UDF has lost one vote to the LDF camp. 

Ramesh Chennithala said after the speaker election that the BJP's stand in the Assembly is a clear sign of the secret deal existing between the LDF and the BJP.  He reiterated that the UDF will have no truck with the BJP in the future as well. 

Responding to a question on the one leakage of a vote from the UDF camp, Chennithala said it can be a mistake. "We will examine how we lost a vote in the speaker election. I don't think that it is deliberate. It can be a mistake.  However, we are considering it very seriously," he added. 

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