UDF, BJP capitalise on popular discontent

LDF strategists acknowledge that the promise of welfare, once a decisive vote-mobiliser, now faces diminishing returns

- HD Bureau

The Bharatiya Janata Party and the United Democratic Front have both capitalised on people's discontent with the CPM-led government, albeit in different ways.

The UDF made inroads by stitching together local alliances and projecting council-level accountability, while the BJP converted targeted campaigns into seat gains in select wards, especially in urban pockets.

The BJP's advances remain uneven statewide, but they underscore a competitive shift that complicates the LDF's electoral arithmetic ahead of the Assembly contest.