KOCHI: With the verbal spat over seat sharing in the local body elections between Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani and NCP legislator Mani C Kappan going on, the tussle for the Pala assembly seat is likely to lead to another political realignment in state politics in the coming days.Though the ongoing row is related to seat sharing in the local body poll, the basic issue is the claim raised by both outfits over the Pala assembly seat. Rumours are rife that Kappan might change sides and contest the Pala seat as a UDF nominee.
The setback in the Pala assembly bypoll following the demise of Kerala Congress stalwart K M Mani had worsened the differences between warring KC(M) factions led by P J Joseph and Jose K Mani and it was the major reason that prompted the Jose faction to end the 36-year-long alliance with the Congress-led UDF.
According to NCP leaders, the party which had contested more than 400 seats in the 2015 local body elections, was given only 165 seats this time. In the Pala constituency, the NCP had won nine grama panchayat wards and a seat in Pala Municipality but it was given only two seats in 2020. The leaders feel that they were sidelined as part of a move to take over the sitting Pala seat from it.
Fuelling rumours of possible political realignment, former CM Oommen Chandy will inaugurate the commemoration meeting being organised by NCP on former state president Thomas Chandy’s death anniversary on Sunday.
However, T P Peethambaran, NCP state president, said the party has no plans to switch sides as of now, but added that the party was not given as many seats as it had contested in 2015. “We hope LDF will register a good victory. No leader has raised the issue of denying seats to the party so far,” he added.A section of NCP leaders say that the LDF declined to give many of these seats to the party alleging that they were moving to the UDF camp.
Resentment is also brewing in another LDF constituent, Kerala Congress (B) headed by former minister R Balakrishna Pillai. A section of leaders pointed out the continuing neglect from the CPM and demanded a return to the UDF fold. However, the party’s lone MLA, K B Ganesh Kumar, has made it clear that it is a fabricated story to destroy KC(B) and there is no such move.
400 Number of seats that the NCP contested in the 2015 local body elections. This time, it was given only 165 seats, said party leaders.
Sidelined?
In the Pala constituency, the NCP had won nine grama panchayat wards and a seat in Pala Municipality in the 2015 local body polls. However, it was given only two seats in the just-concluded elections.
The party leaders feel that they were sidelined as part of a move to take over the sitting Pala seat from it