Varied permutations at Vadakara

CPI(M) may not give seat to ‘socialist’ partner; Cong. likely to back RMP

The candidature profile of the Vadakara Assembly segment, mostly socialist, is likely to change with the Congress and the CPI(M) pitching for their own nominees in the forthcoming Assembly polls.

In the 2016 polls, the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Janata Dal (United) were in a direct contest, from the LDF and the UDF camps respectively. But now, both entities are with the LDF and are making moves to get the seat.

However, the CPI(M) leadership has different electoral plans — to put up its own candidate or an acceptable face in the Vadakara segment. All these years, the CPI(M) has been offering the seat to the ‘socialist’ parties. Incidentally the last victory of a communist here was in 1957, that of Kelu Mandoti Kuniyil.

Veteran leader C.K. Nanu won the seat in 2016, 2011 and 2001 on the JD(S) ticket and as Janata Dal nominee in 1996.

M.K. Premnath of the JD(S) was the winner in the 2006 polls. Another socialist leader K. Chandrasekharan represented the segment from 1977 to 1996.

If the CPI(M) decides to execute its plan, the intense political rivalry between the JD(S) and the now transmuted nascent partner in the Left platform, Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD), will finally come to an end at least electorally.

In the Congress

Into the bargain is the Congress party after its spectacular victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Then Congress nominee K. Muraleedharan logged 71,162 votes while P. Jayarajan of the CPI(M) secured 48,199. The Congress has never won from the segment.

However, the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) leadership is planning to support K.K. Rema, wife of slain Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) leader T.P. Chandrasekharan, as an Independent candidate sensing that the political narrative in Vadakara will favour the Congress coalition.

In the 2016 Assembly polls, Ms. Rema got over 20,000 votes as an RMP candidate while Mr. Nanu secured 49,211 votes and his opponent Manayath Chandran, 39,700 votes. However, the RMP, which had an electoral understanding with the UDF in the recent local body polls, is yet to decide on contesting the seat.

Nevertheless, in the last three parliamentary polls, the RMP has been tactically ensuring the victory of Congress candidates in Vadakara. This will be more pronounced now in the Assembly segment also.

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