As the Left Democratic Front (LDF) goes into a huddle to review its electoral drubbing in the Puthuppally Assembly constituency, the heavier-than-expected defeat has also cast doubts on the durability of its strategy to swing votes from rubber-growing areas leftward through the Kerala Congress (M) [KC(M)].
Post the death of Oommen Chandy, the LDF nursed the hope of electoral victory in Puthuppally with fervour, but has been engulfed by the constituency’s anti-Left character. The defeat has been especially heavy for the KC(M) as it puts the regional party under the lens for a perceived failure in arresting the leakage of votes to the United Democratic Front (UDF).
Not above 35%
Although the LDF has claimed to have retained its core vote base in the constituency, the fact that it could not garner more than 35% of votes in any of the eight local bodies in the segment has come as a shocker. The lurid emphasis on the plight of rubber growers — the core political agenda of the KC(M) — appears to have failed in disturbing the constituency’s character a wee bit, even in pockets where the regional party wields command.
For instance, in Akalakunnam grama panchayat, a KC(M) stronghold under the LDF rule, UDF candidate Chandy Oommen bagged a lead of 4,151 votes. The regional party that helped the LDF to wrest the panchayat for the first time in its history three years ago also demonstrated its might once again by restricting the UDF’s margin to just 1,818 votes in the local body in the Assembly elections a year later.
The scene, however, was much different this time. While the UDF raised its tally in the local body by 1,304 votes, the LDF actually lost 1,029 votes.
Taking note of the attempts to put the blame for the loss on it, the KC(M) has vehemently denied the allegations of vote leakage and instead stuck to the ‘UDF-BJP nexus’ theory to explain the massive lead of Mr. Oommen. “Had the BJP votes not flown to the UDF kitty through the agreement struck in Kidanagoor, a neighbouring panchayat, the UDF’s lead would not have soared to this point,’’ said Stephen George, KC(M) office general secretary.
CPI, KC(M) tussle
The setback, meanwhile, is expected to have a bearing on a long-simmering tussle between the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the KC(M) over their respective positions within the LDF in the Central Travancore region. The origin of this dispute is traced to the Assembly elections of 2021 when the CPI had to cede the Kanjirappally seat in Kottayam to the KC(M). For the time being, however, the CPI is yet to assess the result and seeks to attribute the defeat to the emotional wave triggered by the death of Oommen Chandy.
