PALAKKAD: A Left bastion since the turbulent 60s, Malampuzha has emerged as a key battleground, driven by shifting political equations and internal frictions across the three major fronts.
The entry of A Suresh—former aide to late CPM veteran V S Achuthanandan who represented the seat for 20 years—into UDF has added a layer of political intrigue in the seat where CPM has fielded sitting MLA A Prabhakaran, also a VS confidante. Meanwhile, BJP has re-nominated C Krishnakumar, its trusted face in the district.
Despite its dominant run—winning in 2021 and 2016 by 25,734 and 27,142 votes, respectively—CPM faces a more complex environment this time. The BJP’s steady growth is causing concern for the party. Emergence of a rebel faction also pose challenges for CPM.
Nidhin Kanicheri, CPM district committee member, brushed aside the concerns. “In the Lok Sabha elections, where UDF won Palakkad with a huge majority, LDF secured a margin of 6,520 votes in Malampuzha. In local body polls too, we led by nearly 23,000 votes. The rebel team was anyway not supporting us in the recent elections,” he said.
The NDA, which sees Malampuzha as one of its ‘A’ seats, aims to capitalise on local grievances and anti-incumbency sentiment. “People are talking about poor treatment of farmers, water scarcity, job uncertainty, and industry exodus. These issues will turn into votes for us,” said G Sujith, BJP mandalam president. But BJP is facing internal issues, too, with some within the party expressing dissatisfaction with the repeated candidature of Krishnakumar.
The UDF is banking on internal discord in CPM and Suresh’s entry to improve its prospects. “CPM supporters are unhappy with the leadership. We expect that to favour us,” said Congress leader Revathi Babu. However, a section of Congress leaders has expressed dissatisfaction with the continued practice of fielding non-local candidates.
As poll nears, organisational structure of the parties will end up playing a decisive role in Malampuzha.