Seat allocation proves tricky for political parties in Kerala

Ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in Kerala, political parties are engaged in hectic parleys with their respective allies on seat allocation. Arguments and objections have also begun within the Congress and the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM).

Thiruvananthapuram: Political parties and the alliances formed by them are all engrossed in the talks to decide on the right candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections in April 2021.

Arguments and objections have also begun within the Congress and the Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM) right from the time initial thoughts on who can be fielded surfaced.

K Sudhakaran, Congress working president, had called on former DCC president AV Gopinath, who had declared that he would contest against MLA Shafi Parambil, for reconciliation talks.

Sudhakaran talked to Gopinath at the latter’s house in Palakkad. There is conflict within the Congress against fielding Jyothi Kumar Chamakkala at Pathanapuram.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) leadership has been selecting candidates neglecting the directions from the Congress high command that those who have won four times consecutively may not be fielded again.

KPCC changed the decision after considering the objection from those who would lose their seats. However, those who have lost after contesting on Congress seats twice will not be given another chance. Even as it is being said that the new faces and youth would be given a chance, the main criterion for candidate selection is winnability, the KPCC clarified.

Meanwhile, in the CPM camp, the party has decided not to choose candidates who have won twice. The party workers from the constituencies of the CPM Ministers and CPM MLAs have already started protests against this decision.

A public protest within the CPM first came up for P Sreeramakrishnan in Ponnani and G Sudhakaran in Ambalappuzha.

Posters have been put up in their respective constituencies seeking the party leadership to give one more chance for these two legislators to contest in the Assembly elections.

Replacing CPM leader Raju Abraham who has won four times in Ranni Constituency, and allocating the seat to the new ally of the LDF Kerala Congress (M) had led to strong objections within the party.

The party workers demand that the CPM seat should be retained in Ranni.

As part of the public protest against denying CPM leader P Jayarajan a seat, Sports Council Kannur District vice president Dheeraj Kumar resigned from his position.

The objections against the decision not to allocate a seat to Jayarajan is also expressed strongly through social media platforms.

The CPM has denied seats to twenty-three legislators, including five incumbent Ministers and the Speaker in compliance with the party decision that leaders who have won twice to the Assembly must not be fielded again.