Party: Bahujan Samaj Party
Constituency: Kanyakumari
State: Tamil Nadu
Mission statement: I want to be an instrument of change

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P. Sivakami got a head start over the others. She completed the first round of her campaign in Kanyakumari, while other candidates were waiting for their parties to finalise alliances. A former IAS officer, she quit the service to join politics. And she chose Kanyakumari because of its high literacy rate (next only to Coimbatore) and the fact that it has the highest per capita income in the State.

“These two aspects make me believe that people in the constituency will go for a candidate like me,” says the 53-year-old Bahujan Samaj Party contestant. This explains why she chose this general constituency despite being a Dalit.
The author of four novels and a hundred short stories, she has published the English version of her Tamil novel, Pazhaiana Kazhithalum with the title “The grip of change.”
Ms. Sivakami rejects the argument that in this communally sensitive constituency — where Christians and Hindus are always waiting for an opportunity to settle political scores — she does not stand much chance.
“Tell me which constituency is not communally sensitive? The problem persists across the country. If it is not religion, it is caste. This should change. In the last 10 years, the world has changed a lot and you cannot afford to remain unchanged. In Kanyakumari, I want to be an instrument of change,” she stresses.
In contrast to the high-voltage campaign of the main political parties, hers is restrained. But even so, her name is familiar to all the households in the district. She meets leaders and office-bearers of various organisations and addresses street corner meetings.
She rejects the argument that she is an outsider in the constituency, saying her husband belongs to the district. “I have close contacts with many social organisations in the district. I am also aware of its problems,” she says.
Ms. Sivakami says she has no regrets about quitting the IAS to test political waters. “Many asked me why I quit the service when the pay commission recommendations were being implemented. They say I would have benefited heavily. But I know what I am doing.”
She says that as ex-IAS officer, she has had the advantage of working closely with politicians. “I have studied politicians and how they function. I am better equipped for the job,” she says.