Left Side Story

Personal attacks, lower voter turnout and the BJP’s determined campaigning: how has Kerala voted this time?

- Shahina K K

IT is 2 pm on April 4 in Kakkuni, Vadakara constituency. A large number of people have gathered under the blazing sun for a public meeting of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) candidate K K Shailaja. The crowd, particularly women, surround the former health minister expressing their love and affection, chanting slogans and listening attentively to her brief speech.

On the other side, the United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate and sitting MLA, Shafi Parambil, the youthful face of the Congress, receives an equally enthusiastic response during his roadshow. Around 5,000 women— Shailaja’s mass base—are on the streets to display their support to Parambil. A member of the legislative assembly representing Palakkad, Parambil was a surprise addition to the UDF’s line-up. In 2021, he won against the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) candidate, ‘Metro man’ E Sreedharan, and emerged as one of the most promising young leaders in the Congress.

During the final stretch of the election, as we journeyed through approximately seven constituencies in northern Kerala, we noticed a surprising emptiness on the streets, with the exception of Vadakara. The bustling energy depicted on social media did not align with the subdued atmosphere outdoors. One prominent reason for this is the intense summer heat, reportedly the worst in 50 years, which has deterred people from venturing out during daytime. Instead, social media platforms were flooded with videos and images of vibrant night marches, indicating that the true election fervour seemed to thrive only in the evening and night.