KOCHI: The defeat in Kollam constituency in the 2014 Parliament election is something the CPM cannot digest even after five years. No wonder, this time the party has fielded former Rajya Sabha MP and veteran leader K N Balagopal to take on N K Premachandran who switched to the UDF on the eve of the 2014 polls. Unperturbed by the preparations of the rival camp, Premachandran has already completed around 12 days of campaign during which he claimed to have met over 50,000 people personally.
Premachandran, in an interview to Express Principal Correspondent Unnikrishnan S, says the anti-Modi wave and failure of the state government, especially on the Sabarimala issue, along with his credentials as an MP will help him retain the constituency.
Q. The country is witnessing a lot of action these days in the run-up to Lok Sabha polls. You were in the thick of the action in 2014 too. How is it different this time?
A. In 2014, there was a wave of support for Narendra Modi after the 10-year UPA Government regime was mired in corruption allegations. Last time, the Congress and the UPA were in defensive mode. Now, the tables have turned against the Modi-led BJP Government. There is a threat to the democratic secular fabric of the country. Hence, it has become imperative a secular and democratic government is voted to power at the Centre.
Q. What are your main poll planks?
A. Our main agenda is to help in the formation of a secular and democratic government and we seek votes for that. The failures of the state government will also be reflected in the election as there has never been such an ineffective government in the history of the state. Inefficiency is the hallmark of this government. We have witnessed it during cyclone Ockhi, floods, farmers’ suicide and the ‘government-sponsored’ murder politics.
By fielding P Jayarajan who faces many serious allegations as a candidate, the government is legitimising and encouraging murder politics. It has become a stated policy of the CPM. There is a strong public sentiment against it in the state. All the LDF Government has done is to simply rename Central projects into various missions and present them as its own. The state government has not introduced any new schemes in the last three years.
Q. Will the issue of women’s entry to Sabarimala be a major deciding factor this election?
A. It is definitely going to be a major issue as it has affected not just a particular community but the public as well. The state government has shown how to complicate an issue. Its stance has insulted the public. The issue is not just about gender equality and justice. It is about how a democratic government implements the Supreme Court judgment. The way the state government handled the issue shows the CPM’s clear agenda of hijacking places of worship through its government. The same has been attempted in the case of the Church Act.
Q. The Election Commission has warned against use of Sabarimala issue in campaigning?
A. The Election Commission should not have said the Sabarimala issue could not be a poll issue. The Sabarimala issue, Church Act, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan’s comment on allowing women in mosque for prayers and the triple talaq ordinance should be discussed here. The CPM does not want to discuss these issues as it leads to the discussions on the government’s failure.
Q. You have complained of smear campaign against you from the CPM camp. Your comments.
A. The CPM has not been able to dispute my credentials as an MP and in personal life. So, they resort to smear campaigning. They have tried it on a lot of people before. I have been a people’s representative since 1988 in a front led by the CPM. They know my secular credentials more than anyone else. The
public is not bothered by such tactics. I am getting positive response from the public.
Even the CPM supporters are appreciative of my efforts as an MP.