Union Minister and NDA candidate for Thiruvananthapuram, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, sparked controversy after erroneously claiming Kerala was experiencing floods and expressing condolences for the purported loss of lives.
Leaders from the ruling CPI(M) and others swiftly criticized Rajeev Chandrasekhar for spreading misinformation, triggering a wave of backlash on social media platforms.
In a now-deleted Malayalam post, Rajeev Chandrasekhar expressed sorrow over the reported loss of lives due to floods in Kerala and offered condolences to the affected families. However, Kerala is currently experiencing heavy rainfall and localized waterlogging, not widespread flooding.
Responding to Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s misstatement, General Education Minister V Sivankutty ridiculed him, suggesting he may have confused reality with the movie ‘2018’, based on the 2018 Kerala floods. Thiruvananthapuram Mayor Arya Rajendran also chimed in, sharing a photo from the movie and humorously questioning Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s confusion.
The erroneous post has been widely circulated on social media, with left-leaning and Congress pages sharing memes and sarcastic replies.
Despite the misinformation, heavy rains persist in several parts of Kerala, resulting in waterlogging in low-lying areas of major cities like Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Thrissur, and Kozhikode. Red and orange alerts have been issued in many districts, prompting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to advise caution among residents.
While rain-related incidents have claimed at least four lives in recent days, the state is not currently facing a flood situation.
