Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

LDF ahead in election campaign in Thiruvananthapuram district

N.J. Nair

Anti-incumbency factor, lack of a united effort with DIC(K) hampering UDF canvassing

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Left Democratic Front (LDF) seems to have gained an edge over the United Democratic Front (UDF) on the campaign front in at least 12 of the 14 Assembly segments in the district, which are going to the polls on Friday.

A strong anti-incumbency factor, dormancy in the Bharatiya Janata Party camp and failure to instil a spirit of unity between the ruling front and the Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran) at the grassroots level, combined with the systematic campaigning style of the Left Front, are factors likely to strengthen the Opposition alliance's bid to make deep inroads into traditional UDF strongholds.

Resentment over denial of the Kovalam seat to the Janata Dal (S) leader A. Neelalohitadasan Nadar, occasioning his entry as an Independent, and replacement of the Kerala Congress (J) leader Antony Raju with V. Surendran Pillai in the Thiruvananthapuram West constituency after the former was charge-sheeted in a case related to tampering with court evidence are two major issues that the Left Front is fighting hard to overcome.

The development schemes launched by the Government under the capital city region development programme and the electoral pact struck with the DIC(K) are expected to keep the UDF in good stead. But the electoral understanding has not made a significant impact among the followers of the two.

Except in Thiruvananthapuram East, where the Hindu Munnani candidate P. Jyothindra Kumar is running a strong campaign, the BJP has not made its presence felt in any other segment. Thiruvananthapuram is considered as one of the districts where the DIC(K) wields considerable clout. Once the party struck a deal with the UDF, it had to be content with just two seats: Thiruvananthapuram West, where the party has fielded Shobana George, and Kilimanoor, which was given to Kavaloor Madhu.

It is another issue that the decision has come as a real shock to some prominent DIC(K) leaders, including N. Peethambara Kurup and P. Vijayadas, whom the party was planning to field in Attingal and Thiruvananthapuram East, respectively.

A DIC(K) rebel is posing a threat to the UDF candidate, S. Shine, in Vamanapuram and H.P. Shaji to UDF nominee, M.A. Vaheed, in Kazhakoottam. The LDF has fielded Kadakampally Surendran to wrest the seat. Mr. Surendran has succeeded in running the campaign against the Mr. Vaheed and the UDF rebel.

Distinct features

Compared with 2001, elections this time round have got some distinct features. Thiruvananthapuram East, West and Kovalam are witnessing strong three-cornered contests. In Thiruvananthapuram East, Mr. Jyothindra Kumar has put up a strong presence in a field dominated by V. Sivankutty of the LDF and B. Vijayakumar of the UDF. In the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP candidate O. Rajagopal came first in the constituency with a comfortable margin. Since the LDF has a consolidated base, the entry of Mr. Jyothindra Kumar is likely to make an erosion largely in the UDF base.

The entry of Ms. George as the UDF nominee in West has sparked off resentment in the Congress, prompting T. Saratchandra Prasad, who has very strong personal and political links in the constituency, to join the fray as an Independent. The BJP withdrawing its candidate Vikraman Nair was seen as an attempt of the party to help out Mr. Prasad. The LDF too had had to undergo the discomfiture of having been forced to replace Mr. Raju with Mr. Surendran Pillai, half way into the campaign. Ms. George and Mr. Prasad had the advantage of hitting the trail much earlier than their opponents.

Kovalam too has had to face similar confusion when the Janata Dal (S) decided to replace Dr. Neelalohitadasan Nadar with Rufus Daniel. Dr. Nadar refused to give up and has put up a strong fight against Mr. Daniel and the UDF candidate, George Mercier.

In Thiruvananthapuram North, Communist Party of India (Marxist) district secretary M. Vijayakumar and District Congress Committee president K. Mohan Kumar are evenly matched. The LDF leaders evince confidence of regaining the seat with a comfortable majority. Though Neyyattinkara and Parassala are considered UDF bastions, the LDF decision to pit the former Neyyattinkara municipal chairman V.J. Thankappan against Thampanoor Ravi, MLA, has added more fire to the contest.

The local contacts of Mr. Thankappan has made the task easier for the LDF workers, but making a dent in the UDF fortress in Parassala where Deputy Speaker N. Sundaran Nadar is taking on R. Selvaraj does not seem too easy. In a similar fashion, the LDF candidate, Venganoor Bhaskaran, is locked in a tough fight in Nemom against Transport Minister N. Sakthan.

The LDF candidates in Attingal and Varkala, Ananthalavattom Anandan and S. Sundaresan, respectively, are way ahead of their respective rivals, C. Mohana Chandran and Varkala Kahar, MLA. In both the constituencies, the LDF has the advantage of having presented local leaders who are well versed with local issues.

The entry of the DIC(K) leader Anil Kumar as an Independent is posing a potential threat to the UDF candidate Shine in Vamanapuram where the LDF has a local leader in J. Arundhati. Mangode Radhakrishnan, MLA from Nedumangad, met with an accident and is out of action, but the LDF workers are sweating it out to see the back of his rival candidate and Congress leader, Palode Ravi.

The former Minister for Power G. Karthikeyan and the Revolutionary Socialist Party leader T.J. Chandrachoodan are also leaving nothing to chance at Aryanad. Their fight has evoked considerable interest, as both are tipped to become Ministers if their fronts secure majority.

The seeming indifference of the public to candidates' entreaties makes predictions impossible, but overall, the LDF seems to have sustained the tempo of the campaign so far till the last leg of the elections.

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