Gyanesh Kumar asked me to contest on BJP ticket, says ex-Kerala Chief Secy Jiji Thomson
Synopsis
A retired Kerala Chief Secretary has alleged that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar once personally asked him to contest on a BJP ticket — and dangled a Union Ministry if he won. The claim, made amid a nationwide protest campaign demanding Kumar's removal, puts a named, first-person account at the centre of a constitutional controversy that opposition parties say goes to the heart of India's electoral integrity.
Key Takeaways
Former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson alleges Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar asked him to contest on a BJP ticket during a shared flight to Delhi .
Kumar allegedly offered Thomson a Union Ministerial berth if elected, and suggested he join the BJP after retirement.
Thomson, who retired in 2016 , says he rejected the suggestion outright.
CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam called the alleged offer 'shameless' and demanded Kumar's immediate resignation .
Opposition protests against the Election Commission are scheduled from 26 September to 2 October .
The Election Commission has separately denied that internal commissioner objections amount to institutional dissent.
Former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson has alleged that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar once asked him to contest an election on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket, offering the prospect of a Union Ministerial berth if he won. The claim, made public on 27 September 2026 in Thiruvananthapuram, has sharpened a widening political storm around the Election Commission of India.
What Thomson Alleged
Jiji Thomson, who retired as Kerala Chief Secretary in 2016, said the exchange took place during a flight to Delhi when he and Gyanesh Kumar were travelling together. According to Thomson, Kumar asked whether he would be willing to fight an election on a BJP ticket and indicated he could become a Union Minister if elected. Kumar also reportedly suggested that Thomson join the BJP after his retirement from service, Thomson claimed.
Thomson said he flatly rejected the suggestion, telling Kumar he had no interest in electoral politics. He added that he was surprised such an offer had come from Kumar at all.
Why the Disclosure Carries Weight
The timing is politically charged. Gyanesh Kumar is currently facing mounting pressure over the functioning of the Election Commission, with multiple parties demanding his removal. A coordinated protest campaign has been called from 26 September to 2 October. Thomson's account, if credible, would raise questions about Kumar's political leanings long before he assumed the top electoral post — a matter of direct constitutional consequence given the Commission's role as an independent arbiter of elections.
Notably, the Election Commission has pushed back against a separate line of criticism — that internal objections raised by other Election Commissioners constitute institutional dissent — saying that queries, observations, and technical suggestions are part of the normal functioning of a multi-member constitutional body.
CPI Demands Immediate Resignation
Communist Party of India (CPI) state secretary Binoy Viswam reacted sharply to Thomson's disclosure, calling the alleged offer 'shameless' and demanding Kumar's immediate resignation. Viswam said the claim exposed the depth of Kumar's alleged alignment with the BJP, arguing that Kumar had 'become an insider of the BJP through the successive positions he had held.'
Viswam had on the preceding Friday also alleged that the Election Commission was functioning as 'a tool in the hands of the BJP governments,' and said Left parties had a duty to protest against the poll panel's conduct.
Broader Political Context
This disclosure adds a fresh dimension to an already contentious national debate about the independence of the Election Commission of India. Opposition parties have consistently questioned whether the Commission has maintained the institutional distance from the ruling establishment that the Constitution demands. Thomson's account — coming from a retired civil servant with direct personal knowledge — lends a concrete, named allegation to what had until now largely been a political argument.
The BJP has not formally responded to Thomson's specific claims as of the time of reporting. How the Election Commission and the ruling establishment address this allegation is likely to shape the next phase of the controversy.
Point of View
First-person allegation against a sitting Chief Election Commissioner is constitutionally significant in a way that partisan political charges are not — it cannot be dismissed as opposition rhetoric. The allegation, if substantiated, would suggest that Kumar was actively facilitating BJP recruitment while still in government service, which would be a serious breach of civil service neutrality well before his elevation to the country's highest electoral office. What the mainstream coverage underplays is the evidentiary gap: Thomson's account is unverified and Kumar has not responded specifically to it. The Election Commission's credibility crisis is real, but conflating a serious allegation with established fact does the institution — and the public — a disservice. An independent inquiry, not just political noise, is what the moment demands.
NationPress
27 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did former Kerala Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson allege against Gyanesh Kumar?
Jiji Thomson alleged that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar asked him during a shared flight to Delhi to contest an election on a BJP ticket, offering a Union Ministerial berth if he won. Thomson said he rejected the suggestion and was surprised it came from Kumar.
When did the alleged conversation between Thomson and Gyanesh Kumar take place?
According to Thomson, the conversation occurred during a flight to Delhi before his retirement from service in 2016. No more specific date has been publicly provided.
Why does this allegation matter now?
Gyanesh Kumar is already under pressure from opposition parties who have demanded his removal and organised protests from 26 September to 2 October 2026. Thomson's personal account adds a concrete, named allegation to broader concerns about the Election Commission's independence.
What did CPI's Binoy Viswam say about the disclosure?
CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam called the alleged offer 'shameless' and demanded Kumar's immediate resignation. He argued the claim showed how deeply Kumar was aligned with the BJP through positions he had held over time.
Has Gyanesh Kumar or the BJP responded to Thomson's allegations?
As of the time of reporting, neither Gyanesh Kumar nor the BJP has formally responded to Thomson's specific claims. The Election Commission has separately said that internal objections by its members are part of normal institutional functioning, not dissent.
