India, Sept. 26 -- Former Kerala chief secretary Jiji Thomson has alleged that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar asked him in 2016 to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha election as a BJP candidate.

Thomson said the conversation took place during a flight to Delhi while he was serving as Kerala's chief secretary. Kumar was also a serving IAS officer at the time.

"I was serving as the Kerala chief secretary then. We were together on a flight," Thomson told OnManorama. He said Kumar asked whether he would contest from Pathanamthitta on a BJP ticket.

According to Thomson, Kumar spoke about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's growing popularity in Kerala and tried to persuade him to enter politics. Thomson said he rejected the suggestion immedia...