Kochi Corporation Budget approved amid Opposition boycott

The Kochi Corporation’s Budget 2026-27 was passed with changes suggested during the debate, even as the Opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) staged a boycott alleging that the changes reduced the surplus to deficit.

Deputy mayor Deepak Joy had presented a budget surplus of ₹132 crore. Mayor VK Minimol said proposals to address the drinking water shortage and build monuments to late literary critic MK Sanoo and ghazal singer Umbayi were being considered.

However, LDF Parliamentary Party leader VA Sreejith said the Opposition chose to boycott the Budget instead of approving it because it felt that the amendments were creating budget deficit in violation of the Municipal Act.

For the budget to be feasible, the Corporation would have to collect property taxes worth ₹78 crore in a single month, which he said was “near impossible”. While in his Budget speech he mentioned projects like the ₹200-crore renovation of Pandarachira canal and two new waste treatment plants costing ₹40 crore, he pointed out that these were not included in the Budget estimates. He argued that including them would push the budget into deficit. “This is a ploy to gain public support by announcing projects without allocating funds for their implementation. There is no reason for us to support budget deficit,” Mr. Sreejith said.

Ms. Minimol countered that the rejuvenation of the Pandarachira canal was done with foreign funds and did not need to be taken into account in the Corporation’s estimates. He said it was common practice for budgets to reference such projects. For example, the previous LDF council had earmarked ₹75 crore for the Compressed Biogas plant in Brahmapuram even though it was funded by BPCL-Kochi Refineries.

Meanwhile, Corporation secretary PS Shibu, in a written response to LDF’s petition that the budget was leaked before its presentation, clarified that only the council agenda generated through the K-Smart module was shared with the councilors and media. He noted that the Municipal Code does not contain any provisions mandating confidentiality of the Budget estimate prepared by the standing committee on finance, but precedents follow this practice. While the opposition claimed this vindicated its accusation, the ruling council argued that it merely reaffirmed its position.