PATHANAMTHITTA: Pathanamthitta does not have a coastline but the district offers a perfect setting for the confluence of various seas of faith. The banks of the mighty river Pampa that flows through the district is the venue of both the Maramon convention — one of Asia’s biggest congregation of Christians — as well as the century-old Hindu meet at Ayroor-Cherukolpuzha.
Predictably, Pathanamthitta’s electoral verdicts too transcend traditional notions of caste and party politics. Once known as a district where the UDF enjoyed an upper hand, Pathanamthitta district started slowly drifting towards the Left in assembly elections over the past decade. The score which reached LDF -4 and UDF -1 in 2016 turned into a total washout for the UDF after the 2019 assembly bypoll.
Konni, a UDF citadel since 1996, fell into LDF hands in the 2019 bypoll thanks to infighting within the Congress ranks over denial of seat to five-time MLA Adoor Prakash’s nominee. This time, Prakash’s nominee is the UDF candidate and the Congress-led front is hopeful of wresting the seat back despite the dissidence menace. In 2019, BJP state president K Surendran contested from Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha constituency, that also includes Konni, when the Sabarimala issue was at its peak.
But the BJP leader had to be content with the third spot in Konni and the entire Pathanamthitta parliament seat as well. In the bypoll that followed in Konni, Surendran saw his vote share dropping from 32% to 28%. However, the saffron camp has high hopes of wresting Konni this time, despite finishing third in the seat twice.
Aranmula constituency saw social engineering of a different kind in the previous assembly election, when LDF decided to field journalist Veena George who enjoyed the firm backing of the Orthodox Church. The Left-Church combo proved disastrous to the UDF in Aranmula, which has a history of alternating between LDF and UDF in the assembly polls for the past 25 years.
Former minister Mathew T Thomas is hopeful of a fourth term as legislator from Tiruvalla, even as the UDF is hell-bent on winning back the seat. The UDF has fielded Kunju Koshy Paul, a leader of Kerala Congress Joseph faction, who enjoys considerable popularity in the constituency, to take on the three-time MLA. Unless no big anti-incumbency wave sweeps the district, the LDF is likely to retain Aranmula and Tiruvalla as well, say political observers.
Ranni, a red fortress, had sent Raju Abraham of CPM to the assembly for five consecutive terms. However, the LDF’s decision to hand over the seat to Kerala Congress (M) may see Ranni going to the UDF kitty. Congress has fielded Ringoo Cherian to wrest back Ranni, once represented by his father M C Cherian.
Adoor is perhaps the only seat where the LDF seems very confident, thanks to the delimitation in 2011 that brought large swathes of Left pockets under the constituency. Sitting MLA Chittayam Gopakumar is popular, a reason why he was fielded in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls as well. LDF leaders are confident that Adoor, unlike other constituencies in the district, can withstand an anti-incumbency wave against the CPM-led front.