Electioneering picks up in Kerala

Electioneering in Kerala has gathered momentum, amidst a row over the association of Left Democratic Front (LDF) with the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) led by Abdul Nazar Madani. It is not expected to be a cakewalk for the LDF this time as in the last Lok Sabha elections, when it won 18 out of the 20 seats.

Even seat sharing discussions of the LDF were not smooth and a faction of the Janata Dal is now protesting the denial of their sitting seat at Kozhikode. Though the Janata Dal has five MLAs, only two of them, former minister Mathew T Thomas and Jose Thettayil are actively campaigning for the LDF, indicating a split in the state unit of the party.

The CPI (M) too has adopted a tough stand this time on seat-sharing and is contesting from 15 constituencies. The CPI is contesting from four. In the 2004 election, the CPI (M) contested from 14 constituencies.

In all, 324 candidates have filed their nominations with a maximum of 26 in Kottayam and a minimum of 10 in the Malappuram constituency.

The Catholic Church of the state is also opposing the front citing various reasons. The church has locked horns with the LDF government on issues like fee structure and admission of self-financed professional colleges.

Though the PDP is not a member of the LDF, the most important campaigner for the LDF is Madani, who was allegedly involved in the Coimbatore bomb blast in 1998 targeting LK Advani, the then home minister.

The Congress this time is contesting 17 seats, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) 2 and the Kerala Congress (Mani faction) 1. Shanimol Usman, chief of the Mahila wing of the state Congress, rejected the party ticket as she was given the Kasargod seat.

A major battle ground is likely to be Thiruvananthapuram where Congress has nominated Shashi Tharoor, former UN under secretary while The BJP has fielded its state unit president PK Krishnadas.

CPI (M) has denied party tickets to three of its sitting MPs this time -- NN Krishnadas, S Ajayakumar and CS Sujatha -- mainly due to their association with the VS Achuthanandan faction of the party. The party has included young faces like KK Ragesh, PK Biju, president, Students Federation of India, and MB Rajesh, president of the state unit of Democratic Youth Federation of India.