PALAKKAD: For over five decades, Malampuzha has symbolised the organisational depth and ideological continuity of the CPM in Kerala. A constituency once described as a ‘VIP seat’ because of the stature of leaders it produced,
Malampuzha now enters the election cycle amid sharper competition, rising BJP confidence and renewed calculations within the UDF. While history overwhelmingly favours the Left, emerging vote data and the 2025 local body poll outcomes suggest the contest is no longer merely about victory margins.
The BJP, significantly, is openly confident of winning the seat this time. Having consolidated its position as the second most powerful force since 2016 and improved its booth-level presence, the party believes the numbers now point to a winnable scenario rather than symbolic growth.
The Congress, meanwhile, is trying to create a ‘vismayam’ by fielding a surprise candidate in A Suresh, former personal assistant to V S Achuthanandan, who represented the assembly for a long time.
The constituency was formed in 1965 and Malampuzha has never elected an MLA outside the CPM. M P Kunhiraman became the first MLA winning the 1965 election. The seat gained statewide prominence in 1980 when E K Nayanar won from Malampuzha and went on to become chief minister.
In 1987, CPM district secretary T Sivadasa Menon won on his electoral debut and later served as electricity minister. The constituency’s stature got elevated in 2001 when VS, after an unexpected defeat in his traditional stronghold, contested from Malampuzha and defeated Congress leader Satheesan Pacheni. He emerged as a powerful Leader of the Opposition, making Malampuzha central to state politics.
In 2006, amid internal resistance within the party over granting him a seat, the CPM politburo intervened, fielded him again and he won, becoming the CM eventually. Victories followed in 2011 and 2016 as well. In 2021, VS’s close associate A Prabhakaran won the seat, defeating BJP’s C Krishnakumar.
Even during the last Lok Sabha election, when Congress leader V K Sreekandan won the parliamentary seat with a large margin, the LDF secured a 6,502-vote lead within the Malampuzha assembly segment. In the latest local body polls, the Left reportedly maintained a cumulative lead of 21,652 votes in the Malampuzha assembly segment.
However, the most striking statistical shift in Malampuzha politics has been the BJP’s growth trajectory. In the 1996 assembly election, the BJP secured just 5,423 votes. By 2021, through C Krishnakumar, currently the BJP state vice-president, the party polled 50,200 votes, a near tenfold increase over 25 years.
Since 2016, the BJP has consistently finished second in assembly elections in Malampuzha, altering the traditional LDF-UDF bipolar framework and pushing the Congress to third position in successive assembly contests.
The BJP’s organisational gains at the grassroots are also politically significant. The party captured Akathethara panchayat, a development seen as a setback for CPM. It also increased seat share across multiple local bodies under the constituency.
The CPM argues that projects such as the proposed Palakkad Industrial Smart City will attract massive investment and enhance employment prospects, strengthening voter support. The UDF and BJP counter that uninterrupted CPM representation has not translated into visible development outcomes. They highlight unresolved issues, including road infrastructure, drinking water scarcity, tribal welfare concerns and human-wildlife conflict.
While BJP will field Krishnakumar once again as its candidate, the CPM is also expected to give one more term to Prabhakaran. Within the UDF, names such as S K Ananthakrishnan and A Suresh are in consideration, reflecting strategic attempts to recalibrate the contest.
The CPM leaders acknowledged the growth of BJP in the constituency, but asserted that they would improve their vote share showcasing the developmental activities of the state government.
In any case, with the BJP increasing its vote share and Congress all set to bring in a surprise, Malampuzha will be in the limelight this election, too.