Kerala - Kochi   

Political equations may change here

KOCHI: The vanishing of Muvattupuzha from the map of Lok Sabha seats following the reconfiguration of constituencies by the Delimitation Commission is a loss for Ernakulam district, the central Travancore region and the Kerala Congress. And, it is a personal loss for the current MP, P.C. Thomas, who has made it a habit to win the Muvattupuzha seat.

Muvattupuzha was dropped from the new list of constituencies along with Manjeri, Ottappalam, Chirayinkeezhu, Adoor and Mukundapuram. They have been replaced with Malappuram, Chalakkudy, Pathanamthitta, Wayanad, Alathur and Attingal.

The areas under Muvattupuzha have been apportioned to three constituencies spread over three districts: Chalakkudy in Thrissur district, Idukki in Idukki district and Kottayam in Kottayam district. As a result, Ernakulam district now has only one Lok Sabha constituency, Ernakulam, instead of the previous two. Aluva Assembly segment, which was part of the Ernakulam parliamentary constituency, is now with the new Chalakkudy constituency. Many panchayats in the district find themselves clubbed with Lok Sabha constituencies in three nearby districts.

The new Idukki constituency will have the Assembly segments of Muvattupuzha, Kothamangalam, Devikulam, Udumbanchola, Thodupuzha, Idukki and Peerumade. The Kottayam constituency will comprise Piravom, Pala, Kaduthuruthy, Vaikom, Ettumanoor, Kottayam and Puthuppally Assembly segments, a substantial chunk of which was formerly part of Muvattupuzha. The Chalakkudy constituency, which retains most parts of the former Mukundapuram constituency, ha Kaipamangalam, Chalakkudy, Kodungallur, Perumbavur, Angamaly, Aluva and Kunnathunad Assembly segments.

P.J. Joseph, leader of the Kerala Congress (J), says that the loss of Muavattupuzha would also mean a loss of one seat for the Central Travancore region and, as a result, a gain of one seat for Malabar. “The Kerala Congress belt has lost a seat, too,” he pointed out. He recalled that in the 1984 parliamentary election, the Kerala Congress had contested for three seats. It is likely that his party, which currently holds both the Idukki (Francis George) and Muvattupuzha (P.C. Thomas) seats will have to make do with just one—Idukki. “We haven’t as yet discussed this in the Left Democratic Front meetings,” Mr. Joseph told The Hindu. It was not discussed in the KC(J) party forums either, he said.

Choosing between Francis George and P.C. Thomas for the Idukki seat is likely to be hard nut to crack for Mr. Joseph’s party. Mr. Thomas, who has won Muvattupuzha for four times in a row, has a lot of clout in the Muvattupuzha region, a part of it would now go to Idukki. In the 2004 parliamentary election, Mr. Thomas who had ditched the Kerala Congress (Mani) and floated his own political outfit, had contested as the BJP-led NDA’s candidate. Son of the late Kerala Congress strongman P.T. Chacko, he staved off the strong challenges from the LDF and UDF to emerge the winner. He defeated K.M. Mani’s son Jose K. Mani (UDF) and P.M. Ismayil (LDF).

Gopi Kottamurickal, CPI(M) Ernakulam district secretary, says the disappearance of Muvattupuzha is a ‘sad loss’ for the people of the backward eastern Kerala region. He pointed out that by having an MP from Muvattupzha, the farmers in the eastern region effectively highlight their problems in Parliament. “This opportunity has now been lost.” He, however, claimed that the addition of parts of Muvattupuzha to Idukki, Kottayam and Chalakkudy would help the LDF to win these three seats in the next parliamentary polls.

V.J. Paulose, Ernakulam District Congress Committee president, claimed that the UDF would stand to gain from the redrawing of the constituency boundaries. The addition of Muvattupuzha and Kothamangalam, which are UDF strongholds, to Idukki would definitely help the UDF to win Idukki next time, he said. The new Chalakkudy constituency would also favour the UDF, he claimed.

The Muvattupuzha constituency used to be a stronghold of Jacobites, especially the Piravom, Kunnathunad, Kothamangalam and Muvattupuzha Assembly segments. This vote bank is now being scattered across three Lok Sabha constituencies.

The splintering of Muvattupuzha presents difficulties for the political parties too. Most parties have strong district units in Ernakulam with a well-organised organisational structure. This would be upset during the Lok Sabha electioneering as the Ernakulam leaders and campaigners would have to spread their campaign to three other districts too as the constituencies span more than one district.

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