From the beginning, the Puthuppally byelection was a one-horse race. But it had nothing to do with the quality of candidates fielded by the two major fronts. A strong wave of sympathy for the departed Congress leader Oommen Chandy, who represented the constituency for over five decades, obviously worked to the advantage of his son, the United Democratic Front (LDF) candidate Chandy Oommen.
But what helped him post a massive win was the anti-incumbency factor that the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) chose to gloss over. While the CPI(M) Polit Bureau member M.A. Baby admitted the need for introspection by his party and the Left front, many in the top echelons of the party in the State resorted to the strawman argument of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose candidate forfeited his deposit, having played a role in the UDF’s landslide win. Mr. Baby, too, pointed to a coming together of ‘anti-Left votes’ including those of BJP supporters. The fact is that the BJP has never been a force to reckon with in the constituency.
What the leadership of the Left front, that of the CPI(M) to be more precise, conveniently sidesteps is the fact that there’s consternation among the people that the government is running on fumes. And also that the party has not been able to adequately and convincingly respond to the spate of allegations levelled against a close kin of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. If Mr. Vijayan chose to take questions related to the case of gold smuggling through diplomatic baggage ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections, his refusal to respond to the charges annoyed the public and upset his party workers at the lower levels.
Resentment in party
While Mr. Vijayan campaigned for the Left candidate Jaick C. Thomas at Puthuppally, his silence on the charges flung at the party and his family members remained intact. There’s resentment in the party about the way the government is functioning. The general feeling is that the young leaders in the Cabinet have not really proven their mettle. Questions are also raised about the ability of the party organisation, including the State secretariat and the secretary, to provide policy guidance and to communicate the same to the cadres. Middle- and lower-level leaders this correspondent spoke to said two consecutive terms in government would weaken any political party. One senior leader said those in the driver’s seat possess a valid licence, but have still to learn driving.
As for the Congress, which relied heavily on the cult of the departed leader, the victory isn’t political.
