KOCHI: Twenty20, the non-political and non-religious wing of Kitex Garments, which is ruling the Kizhakkambalam panchayat, has finally been granted an official election symbol, a mango. In 2015, it contested all 19 seats in the panchayat independently (and won 17) on different symbols. “We didn’t have a symbol in the last elections that we contested,” said Sabu M Jacob, Kitex MD and chief coordinator of Twenty20. “And it led to a lot of problems since we didn’t have a common thread to define the candidates whom we fielded. They had to get symbols of their own,” he said. According to Sabu, with the party getting the symbol, the candidates will have an identity to proclaim before the voters.
“A symbol is everything. Contesting an election under your party symbol takes a lot of guts since it brings to perspective not only you as a person but also the policies adopted by your party. Contesting under a single symbol shows that you are a single united party,” he said. According to him, all the fronts today are not a single party. “They are all made of multiple parties that have as many symbols,” said Sabu.
“When it comes to local body elections, all the major fronts can be seen fielding independent candidates. That has been their strategy for long. However, Twenty20 candidates will all be fighting the elections under a single symbol,” he said. According to him, these elections seem to have become a fight between the LDF, UDF combine and the Twenty20.
“As of now, we have no idea what the BJP is planning. But it has to be understood that when it comes to the basics, all these parties are the same. The ongoing protests and all the clashes with the police happening today is just a show for the coming elections,” he added.