Kerala has traditionally ousted the sitting government from power. But this time there is talk that the CPM-led LDF will continue in power. What has changed?
It is not about the continuation of the current government. A large majority of Kerala’s population wants change. In a way, they fear that the current government of Pinarayi (Vijayan) will continue. The UDF will once again be under the command of a Chief Minister of Congress after this election.
… We don’t believe in polls (opinion polls). Even all these polls say that there is a large segment of the population that is undecided. This time, these undecided voters, independent voters and a part of the left voters … will vote for the UDF. Even a part of the leftists believe that if the LDF retains power, the fate of the communist parties in Kerala, especially the CPM, will be the same as that of the West Bengal CPM. After 35 years of continuous rule in West Bengal, the CPM is now almost nil. A second term for the LDF means that the CPM in Kerala will face the same fate …
While fighting with the CPM in Kerala, in Bengal, Congress has engaged with him. And none of its top leaders, especially Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, have gone to Bengal to campaign in the first two phases.
The CPM in Bengal is no longer the old CPM. His muscle power has been primarily targeted at TMC and BJP. So our group in Bengal decided to have a truck with the CPM. In Kerala, a second term for the left means that the Kerala CPM will also suffer the same fate.
What challenges does Congress face in Kerala this time?
It’s a direct fight between the Congress-led UDF and the CPM-led LDF, the BJP is a fringe force. In the last elections they won a seat. I don’t think they can hold that seat this time.
Have you wanted to send the message of Congress by running a strong candidate in Nemom (the only BJP seat) in the entire state? Will it benefit Congress?
We debated who might be the best candidate to get Nemom back from the BJP. We think of many names. In the end, the Kerala party decided that (Lok Sabha MP) K Muraleedharan is the best candidate. He had defeated the same BJP candidate (Kummanam Rajasekharan) in the last elections to the Assembly of Vattiyoorkavu (a segment of the Assembly in Thiruvananthapuram).
Congressional leader Rahul Gandhi during an election campaign for the Kerala assembly polls in Mananthavady. (PTI photo)
In the last elections to Parliament, we had asked him to run from Vadakara, a stronghold of the PCM. Captured that seat. Nemom’s seat was once represented by the late K Karunakaran, the father of Muraleedharan. And the people of Thiruvananthapuram, especially Nemom, have a soft corner for Karunakaran. Muraleedharan himself is a fighter.
But has that message gotten through that Congress is serious about keeping the BJP out of Kerala? Will it help you attract more minority votes?
I am not a dreamer. Here and there, there will be BJP pockets. Even before the BJP, the Jan Sangh was strong in certain pockets … in Palakkad, Kasargod, Thiruvananthapuram … But they got a seat and that too last time. In the last elections to Parliament, they obtained almost 16% of the votes. Our goal is to have a new Assembly without a BJP representative. That does not mean that throughout the state the BJP has no workers or supporters … but our goal is that there is no BJP MLA in the Assembly. As a party, the BJP will exist in Kerala, but as a weak party.
Is the UDF concerned about Christian voters since the Kerala (M) Congress moved to the LDF? The BJP talk about ‘love jihad’ seems to have some traction in the community.
In recent elections for local bodies, the CPM divided castes and communities. In the name of Sabarimala, they divided the Hindu community between those who ‘support the rebirth’ and those who ‘oppose it’ … And they have cleverly created a gap between Christians and Muslims.
(But) Those things are over. Every community in Kerala realizes that, like it or not, unlike North India, in every village in the state, Hindus, Muslims and Christians live together as neighbors. So community leaders realize that they may have some differences … but that should not be allowed to explode. After the local body elections, the community leaders themselves took the initiative to solve the problems. Now the communal temperature has cooled … Congress also played a role … the party has never tried to win an election by dividing communities. We are an umbrella party … we believe in unifying all castes and communities.
But do you think that a party that calls itself progressive, like Congress, should talk about introducing a law to subvert an order from the Supreme Court on the entry of all women to Sabarimala? That’s the same position as BJP’s.
There is no conflict in that. Because Congress as a party believes in the Constitution… which guarantees fundamental rights. Every Indian, regardless of his religion or region, can follow his beliefs and customs. That is the strength of India. Unity in diversity, pluralism. We want to defend this pluralism. We want to protect the beliefs, customs, language, culture of all people … In Kerala, there are hundreds of thousands of temples. Their customs are different. Only the Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala has the custom that women over 10 and under 60 cannot enter… We want to protect the custom. That is all.
… Except in Sabarimala, in all the other temples women are free to enter. At the Mookambika temple in Karnataka, even Christians can go. In many temples in Kerala non-Hindus can go … This temple (Sabarimala) only … there is a custom like that … Even Hindu women are particular when it comes to protecting it … It is not anti-women, it is a costume.
The elections in Kerala and Assam are very important to Congress. If Congress performs poorly in these states, how will it affect the party? Similarly, how will a victory change the speech? Especially since Congress has to appoint a new president after the elections.
We will do well in Assam. We are in a much better position. In Tamil Nadu, our ally DMK will sweep the polls with our support. In Kerala, we feel that we can form a government led by Congress and that will help the reactivation of the party at the national level. In 1970, after the 1969 congressional split between Congress (O) and Congress (I), the first election was in Kerala. That election, Congress became the largest party. From Kerala, the Indiraji Congress began its march forward. This time too, a government led by Congress … will accelerate the process of revival, resurrection of Congress. And this process will help Rahul Gandhi’s Congress to remove Modi’s government from power in 2024. This is our long-term perspective.
Should Congress have projected a face of Chief Minister in Kerala? Would it have helped?
It was a deliberate decision by the Kerala party leaders. After many days of debate and deliberation, they thought that to get more votes from all sectors of the Kerala people, to get a better performance … it was better to project collective leadership … There will be no dispute over the position of president after the election. The high command of Congress, after consulting with interested people in Kerala, will unanimously elect a CM.
How do you rate CM Pinarayi Vijayan?
Personally, as an individual, I have nothing against him. But as Chief Minister, I don’t like his style. It is an autocratic style. He is impatient, unwilling to pay attention to criticism from the opposition, the media, the different social groups in Kerala.
It seems to be very popular.
All polls say that there is a large segment of independent voters … Indecisive and independent voters will decide the fate of the Kerala elections. They do not want the continuation of the current government …
.
