Assembly elections are to be held in the South Indian state of Kerala next year. Kerala is the only stronghold of left politics left in the country’s politics. The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) has suffered a major setback in the recently held local body elections in Kerala. In these elections, the United Democratic Front (UDF) led by the Congress Party got the lead. UDF has won in 4 out of 6 municipal bodies and 14 district panchayats. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is in power in the country, has also registered an unexpected victory in these elections.
Local body elections were held in Kerala in two phases on 9 December and 11 December. Elections were held in six municipal corporations and 14 district panchayats, 87 municipalities, 152 block panchayats and 941 panchayats in the state. In these elections, Congress led UDF has won in four municipal corporations, 7 district panchayats and 54 municipalities along with 79 block panchayats and 505 gram panchayats. CPI(M) led LDF has faced defeat in these elections. LDF has won only one municipal corporation, seven district panchayats, 28 municipalities, 63 block panchayats and 340 gram panchayats. These election results, which came almost a year before the assembly elections, have increased the concern of the LGF.
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BJP’s unexpected victory
Bharatiya Janata Party has been trying to increase its support base in Kerala for a long time but till now it has failed to break into this stronghold of the Left. BJP had got one seat in the Lok Sabha elections, after which the enthusiasm of the party workers had increased a lot. In these elections also the party got a big victory in the capital Thiruvananthapuram.
The party has won 50 out of 101 seats in Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation. In these elections, LGF has won 50 seats and UDF has won 19 seats, while two seats have been won by independent candidates. The BJP-led NDA has won one municipal corporation, two municipalities and 26 gram panchayats. From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Defense Minister Amit Shah and the party president have congratulated the party on this victory.
Left’s concerns increased
Kerala is considered to be the only stronghold of Left in Indian politics. After ruling Bengal for almost three decades, TMC under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee had ousted the Left from power, after which the Left has now become the third party in Bengal. The Left is upset with BJP’s victory in the Lok Sabha elections and now BJP’s victory in the Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation. This is being considered a big blow for the Left. Speaking to The Indian Express, CPM state secretary and former Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam described the defeat as a defeat for the entire Left movement and said it was a learning opportunity for them.
‘Need to take lessons from Bengal’
Describing these election results as unexpected, Binoy Vishwam said that BJP’s victory is unexpected. He said, ‘On many occasions we have realized that there is a need to take lessons from Bengal. What happened there was an eye opener. When I talk about us, I mean the entire left movement and not any one person or party. He termed the rising graph of BJP in Kerala as worrying.
He said, ‘This is a serious issue and cannot be taken lightly. The ideology of BJP is a big threat to Kerala and it needs to be countered strongly. It is the responsibility of the communist movement to understand this challenge. We have to give a clear message to the minorities that we stand strongly with them and will continue to fight for their rights. He said that BJP’s ideology is against secularism and for us secularism is the only way.
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What did the experts say?
Senior Congress leader Kelly Venugopal is upset with the media coverage of BJP’s victory. He called it a laughing stock but experts believe that the increasing graph of BJP in Kerala is worrying for Congress. Experts believe that this time’s victory is like a turning point for BJP and is important for the party before the assembly elections to be held next year.
BBC News quoted political analyst Professor J Prabhash as saying, ‘This defeat is a matter of credibility for the LDF. There is anti-incumbency against LDF. There is anti-incumbency against LDF in Thiruvananthapuram also. Congress, which was till now a weak link in the state, has increased its number of seats this time.
Some experts believe that this victory is very important for BJP. However, next year’s elections are said to be easy for Congress. Experts believe that if Congress does not make any mistakes then Congress can form the government in the assembly elections to be held next year. BJP is also gradually gaining ground in the state.
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