No walkover for CPI(M) in Kerala strongholds. Rebels putting party on back foot in Kannur & beyond
M.V.Govindan’s wife Shyamala is the former chairperson of Anthoor municipality, a local body in the Taliparamba constituency, and has been associated with the party’s affiliated organisations, including its women’s wing and student and youth organisations.
“When I compete as a candidate, it will hurt LDF workers. I am sad too. But why I did it matters. I raised my voice in the party, but it was futile. I am doing this to save the party from being destroyed by its leadership,” Govindan told ThePrint afterwards.
His supporters said that until recently, the UDF did not even have enough people to attend an event in Taliparamba.
Meanwhile, a jeep carrying his posters roamed around the constituency seeking votes for Govindan and the UDF, fiercely attacking the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and incumbent Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for alleged nepotism and financial irregularities.
The ruling CPI(M), which arguably had the most intact organisational strength in Kerala, is facing rebels in many key constituencies this Assembly election, something unprecedented for the party. Along with T.K. Govindan, V.K. Kunjikrishnan is taking on the CPI(M) in Kannur’s Payyannur. In Alappuzha’s Ambalappuzha constituency, former minister and senior leader G. Sudhakaran is contesting, and former Shoranur MLA P.K. Sasi is contesting in Palakkad’s Ottappalam, all as Independents backed by the UDF.
While all these constituencies are traditional strongholds of the Left, the rebels have made it difficult for the CPI(M) amid the Congress-led UDF’s aggressive campaign.
For example, the Congress has appointed Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary Soni Sebastian as the in-charge of its poll campaign in Taliparamba, a constituency where the Congress has won only once in 1970. Similarly, one of the party’s star campaigners in Payyannur was Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal. Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan has been attending multiple events there since January.
“The CPI(M) is facing their own members in these constituencies. It will definitely help the Congress to win there. Along with the rebels, many party functionaries are also silently supporting them,” says advocate Martin George, president of the Congress District Committee (DCC) in Kannur.
However, the CPI(M) defends this. Senior CPI(M) leader K.K. Shailaja said the expelled leaders deviated from the party line by expressing interest in contesting openly.
“That is their individual issue. They were against our party and the LDF, and started filing nominations on their own. The party workers will not agree, and huge processions and protest marches were held against them, saying they were cheating the party. So, it will not become a huge issue for the LDF or the party,” K.K. Shailaja told ThePrint in Kannur.
Political analyst K.P. Sethunath said the party will not face any electoral impact due to this issue, as its strong organisational machinery can deal with the crisis at the local level.
However, he noted that this reflects a deeper problem in how the organisation currently handles internal issues. “Organisationally, the party is losing its steel frame. It’s really shaken. These developments are unheard-of, especially involving very senior leaders. It could also be due to the erosion of their political values and ideological coherence.”
Kunjikrishnan was expelled in January after he made public allegations against the party over misuse of funds. The 140 Assembly seats in Kerala will vote 9 April, while the counting takes place 4 May.
Also Read: ‘Vijayettan’ at home, strongman outside: Kerala CM Pinarayi eyes 3rd straight win in Dharmadom
The Kannur situation
In Kerala, Kannur is the CPI(M)’s bastion, housing many “party villages” and having birthed formidable leaders including A.K. Gopalan, E.K. Nayanar, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, and E.P. Jayarajan. Even Vijayan, Shailaja, and the party’s present state secretary M.V. Govindan hail from this region.
Located in the Malabar region, the northern district comprises Taliparamba, Irikkoor, Azhikode, Kannur, Dharmadom, Mattannur, Peravoor, Payyannur, Kalliassery, Thalassery, and Kuthuparamba assembly constituencies.
Of the 11 Assembly constituencies in the district, only Peravoor and Irikkoor are with the Congress. The CPI(M)’s margin of victory in Kuthuparamba, won by Shailaja, was the highest in 2021, with over 60,000 votes. Similarly, Vijayan secured a margin of over 50,000 votes in Dharmadom, and T.I. Madhusoodanan’s margin in Payyannur was over 49,000 votes.
However, it is not as intact this year. A source in Kannur said the CPI(M) is actually worried about securing its own votes in the district this year. Though the CPI(M) might not lose in these constituencies, even a dip in margin will affect the party’s pride, he said.
With rebels Govindan and Kunjikrishnan contesting in Taliparamba and Payyannur, the battle in these constituencies has become intense. At a campaign rally in Payyannur this week, Venugopal alleged that the Congress has learned the CPI(M) is making fake ID cards in Payyannur and Taliparamba to enable fake voting.
“It will not happen without the CM knowing. They have specific targets for Payyannur, Taliparamba, and Ambalappuzha. They have to show that nothing happened in these places. They don’t trust their own votes here. I am alerting the officials. It is the Election Commission’s duty to check this,” Venugopal alleged.
K. Jayaraj, a senior Congress functionary in Payyannur, said the UDF’s support for the rebels has worked, as they are now garnering support of the CPI(M) cadres, though many are scared to say it openly.
The CPI(M) is hoping to overcome this hurdle through its strong organisational setup in Kannur. According to party functionaries, the campaign activities in Taliparamba are being directly overseen by senior leader E.P. Jayarajan, while another senior leader, M.V. Jayarajan, is involved in door-to-door campaigning. CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas and Pinarayi Vijayan have also campaigned there.
CPI(M) functionaries in Payyannur and Taliparamba told ThePrint that they faced questions on the allegations but were able to convince voters with explanations. Many said they directly depend on the party for livelihood through working in its establishments and cooperatives, and believe in whatever the party leadership says.
“People here are not concerned about individuals; it is about the party,” said Vasanthi P., vice-president of Malappattam panchayat, which is part of the Taliparamba constituency.
The CPI(M) district leadership echoed the same. K.K. Ragesh, secretary of the party’s Kannur district unit, said the issues were a “betrayal” which the party has addressed.
“Kannur is still the party’s bastion. Whoever is talking against the party is speaking for the UDF,” he said.
Beyond Kannur
Sudhakaran cut ties with the CPI(M) last month, after alleging sidelining from the party for years. The Public Works Department (PWD) minister in the first cabinet of Pinarayi Vijayan was associated with the CPI(M) for decades. The former state committee member was demoted to a branch committee member in 2022 due to an internal tussle and has since distanced himself from the party.
Soon after, Sudhakaran announced that he would contest as an Independent, after which the UDF expressed full support. In one campaign, he called the CPI(M) a “group of political criminals” and accused it of losing its core ideology.
The CPI(M)’s charge against him came directly from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. “People will wonder why they would support an opportunist. They had done this before. The Congress just needs a seat to defeat the LDF. So, they are fielding a candidate with the BJP’s support. But we are very confident, that is the confidence in the people, it’s the confidence of people in Alappuzha,” Vijayan said this week in a campaign there.
However, the party is not as safe as the CM claims. Aside from Congress-backed independents, the LDF also had many defectors this year in the run-up to polls.
Former CPI(M) Kottarakkara MLA Aisha Potty, who joined the Congress in January, is contesting from the seat against Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal as the Congress candidate. Former CPI MLA C.C.Mukundan got an NDA ticket from his own constituency in Thrissur’s Nattika. Similarly, K. Ajith, former CPI legislator and two‑time MLA from Vaikom, and S. Rajendran, a three‑time CPI(M) MLA from Devikulam, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) this year.
Political analyst Joseph C. Mathew said the situation is new in CPI(M)’s organisational history. He said the CPI(M) will face difficulty keeping its structure intact if it loses the election.
“There is an unprecedented issue. We don’t know how much it’s going to convert into votes, which is another question. But at the same time, it’s unprecedented. If it was one instance, they could have said it was isolated. It’s not the case,” he said, adding that the reason could be the erosion of ideology.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
Also Read: Kerala: CPI(M) facing novel issues but no crisis, says KK Shailaja on rebels. ‘Party not sidelining me’
