MALAPPURAM: Former Speaker A N Shamseer has publicly attributed the LDF’s assembly election defeat to its handling of the Vellappally Natesan controversy, the Ayyappa Sangamam issue, and the selection of candidates in Payyannur and Taliparamba, becoming the first senior CPM leader to openly identify specific reasons for the front’s electoral setback.
Speaking at the Kunjali Martyrs’ Day commemoration at Kalikavu in Malappuram, Shamseer said the LDF’s response to the controversy involving SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan had proved politically damaging. He also admitted that the choice of candidates in Payyannur and Taliparamba was a mistake, saying these political and organisational failures had collectively weakened the front’s electoral prospects.
“Though the Ayyappa Sangamam was not organised by the government, a perception was created among the public that it was. Under no circumstances should Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s statement have been read out at the Ayyappa Sangamam. The party has carried out self-criticism. We will definitely come back,” Shamseer said.
He said the CPM was willing to openly acknowledge its mistakes and correct them.
“Who else but our party can engage in such self-criticism? We identified the reasons for our defeat and criticised ourselves. We are a party that works among the people. In politics, the people are the real masters. When the people tell us that we have made mistakes, we accept those mistakes and move forward,” he said. Taking a swipe at the UDF government, Shamseer said it was still in its “honeymoon period.”