Thiruvananthapuram: Giving in to internal compulsions, the Congress is heading into the April 9 Assembly polls in Kerala without projecting any leader as the chief ministerial face of the United Democratic Front (UDF), which it leads.
Apart from Opposition Leader V. D. Satheesan, the line-up includes senior leader Ramesh Chennithala and former KPCC presidents Sunny Joseph and K. Muraleedharan.
Almost all sitting MLAs are back in the fray in the same constituencies they won in 2021.
The Congress is contesting 95 of the 140 seats up for grabs. The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), the second-largest partner in the UDF, has been allotted 27 seats, while smaller allies like Kerala Congress (Joseph) have received fewer.
After keeping party heavyweights on tenterhooks and delaying the finalisation of candidates, former KPCC president and Kannur MP K. Sudhakaran gave up hope of contesting from his home turf.
Adoor Prakash, another Congress MP and UDF convener, also fell in line after the party signalled that sitting MPs would not be given tickets for Assembly polls.
Satheesan vs Chennithala
V. D. Satheesan (62) is widely seen as a strong contender for the top post if the UDF comes to power. After the coalition’s back-to-back defeats, he replaced Chennithala as Leader of the Opposition in 2021 — a move seen as a generational shift.
Ramesh Chennithala (70), however, remains a senior figure with a long organisational and political career. A Congress Working Committee (CWC) member, he has held key positions from student politics to national leadership roles in the party.
He has represented Harippad in Alappuzha district since 1989 and also had a stint in the Lok Sabha. Despite his long innings and proximity to the party’s central leadership, Chennithala has repeatedly missed out in the chief ministerial race.
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Will he lose out again? Chennithala appears keen to stay in contention, but there are no clear signals of support from the party high command.
In popular perception, Satheesan has gained the edge, emerging as an aggressive opposition leader who has taken on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan both inside and outside the Assembly.
He also features prominently in pre-poll surveys as a chief ministerial contender, ranking close to Vijayan and ahead of Chennithala.
Will he maintain momentum till the final lap, or will a dark horse emerge? The outcome remains uncertain.
BJP fields Union Minister George Kurien to boost Christian outreach
Union Minister George Kurien has emerged as a surprise candidate in the BJP’s list, apparently aimed at strengthening the party’s Christian outreach.
Securing even a small share of the Christian vote is crucial for the BJP in Kerala, where minority communities account for nearly half the electorate.
Kurien is contesting from the Catholic-dominated Kanjirapally seat in central Travancore, a Syrian Christian stronghold.
Given the constituency’s political history and demographics, victory may be difficult. However, party strategists believe his candidature could help improve the BJP’s broader appeal among Christian voters.
Traditionally a UDF bastion, the seat was won by N. Jayarajan of Kerala Congress (M), an LDF candidate, in 2021.
CPI(M)’s image dented by ‘renegades’
The CPI(M)’s image of organisational discipline has taken a hit with internal dissent surfacing.
Senior leader and former minister G. Sudhakaran is contesting from Ambalappuzha as an independent with UDF support after criticising the party and declining to renew his membership.
The party has labelled him a “renegade” — a term often used in Left political discourse for rebels.
Another dissenter is sitting MLA P. K. Sasi from Palakkad.
The party has also faced unrest in its stronghold Kannur. Senior functionary T. K. Govindan criticised the decision to field P. K. Syamala, wife of CPI(M) state secretary M. V. Govindan.
The leadership dismissed the criticism, stating that Syamala is a long-standing party worker with her own credentials.
In Payyannur, local leader Kunhikrishnan has raised allegations of fund misappropriation and is likely to contest with UDF support.
Significantly, Kannur is the home district of both Pinarayi Vijayan and M. V. Govindan.
The CPI, too, has faced setbacks, with a sitting MLA and a former legislator joining the BJP.
