Unilateral candidate pick led to BJP's Palakkad loss

Party started preparations 2 months in advance, but failed to counter allegations

- MANOJ VISWANATHAN @Kochi

THE setback in Palakkad has triggered sharp criticism against the state leadership of the BJP with senior leaders blaming the unilateral selection of the candidate as the reason for the fiasco. While senior leaders like V Muraleedharan and Sobha Surendran refused to comment, former state president C K Padmanabhan said the party should probe the reasons for the defeat. However, Palakkad district committee member Surendran Tharoor, state committee member C V Sajini and national council member N Sivarajan blamed candidate selection for the loss.

The fact that the party has polled fewer votes than the 2016 Assembly election has annoyed the leaders.