KOCHI: Chalakudy Lok Sabha constituency has historically been a Congress stronghold. But, the CPM-led LDF is making concerted efforts to challenge this dominance. The seat, held by Left-backed independent Innocent from 2014-2019, is now a focal point of Left front strategies.
The CPM is actively considering, among others, former education minister C Raveendranath, DYFI leader Jaick C Thomas and CITU leader U P Joseph. The name of actress Manju Warrier is also doing the rounds, given the constituency’s history of surprise candidate choices. Congress’ sitting MP Benny Behanan is most likely to be the UDF candidate.
Among the LDF probables, Raveendranath, a two-term MLA, stands out because of his background as a retired faculty of Thrissur St Thomas College. His tenure as education minister in the first Pinarayi Vijayan government won him many admirers, and he has acceptance across diverse sections. Raveendranath also wields considerable influence in the constituency. Jaick, on the other hand, will be an outsider in Chalakudy, but his acceptance among the youth is an advantage for him. Party leaders are not ruling out the possibility of Manju emerging as a last-minute candidate, given the late Innocent’s surprise ascendancy in 2014.
Responding to the possible candidacy of Manju, LDF’s Ernakulam district convener George Edapparathy said, “It’s not something we can rule out. The candidature of Innocent was a surprise in 2014. The party state committee has the final call on candidates.” Informal talks have begun, he said, adding it won’t be a cakewalk for the UDF this time round.
Chalakudy is a constituency known for dashing the dreams of political heavyweights. A notable instance is Innocent’s defeat of Congress stalwart P C Chacko by 13,884 votes. In the 2009 Lok Sabha election, the constituency leaned towards Congress’ K P Dhanapalan. Innocent’s victory in 2014 marked a significant milestone, as he became the first film personality from the state to make it to the Lok Sabha. However, Benny wrested the constituency for the UDF in 2019 by defeating Innocent by a margin of 1,32,274 votes. By opting for Benny, the UDF will look to rely upon his successful tenure as MP to retain the seat. Party leaders and workers are awaiting an official announcement from the Congress high command.
The constituency is comprised of seven assembly segments spanning two districts — three in Thrissur (Kaipamangalam, Chalakudy, and Kodungallur) and four in Ernakulam (Perumbavoor, Angamaly, Aluva, and Kunnathunad). Among these, UDF MLAs represent Perumbavoor, Angamaly, Aluva, and Chalakudy. This instils confidence in the UDF rank and file.
The Chalakudy constituency was formed in 2008 after the dissolution of Mukundapuram following a delimitation exercise. Mukundapuram, prior to its dissolution, had been a stronghold of the UDF, where it won 10 times from 1957. However, in 2004, Padmaja Venugopal, the daughter of Congress stalwart K Karunakaran, had to taste defeat.