Pinarayi Vijayan blames ex-CPI(M) leader for party's defeat in stronghold

Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, Pinarayi Vijayan, on Monday accused independent MLA TK Govindan of betraying the CPI(M) and contributing to the party's defeat in Thaliparamba, a constituency widely seen as a CPI(M) stronghold.

Speaking at a CPI(M) rally in Thaliparamba held to explain the party's stand after the loss, Vijayan said the LDF's vote share had fallen by more than 11 per cent compared with the 2021 election. Govindan, a former CPI(M) leader, had left the party after differences over the decision to field CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan's wife as the candidate. He later contested as an independent with the support of the UDF and won the seat.

Vijayan said the drop in votes was the main reason for the defeat. "The reason for our defeat is that we lost more than 11 per cent of the votes compared to the votes we received in 2021. This is what led to the defeat," he said.

He said Govindan's candidature had caused some votes to move away from the LDF. "The opponent who contested here was T K Govindan, who became a candidate by taking a stand of betraying the party. When T K Govindan came as a candidate, it can be seen that following that candidacy, a few votes were lost from the LDF," he said.

Vijayan also said it was unfortunate that some people who had backed the CPI(M) at various stages had taken a different stand in the election. "The fact that a lot of people who stood with the CPI(M) at all stages thought differently at this stage was something that should not have happened. Only if a mistake is recognised as a mistake can it be corrected. Those who took such a stance should conduct proper introspection regarding that matter," he said.

Meanwhile, addressing a meeting, Govindan alleged that the CPI(M) leadership was damaging the party for its own interests. "The leadership is destroying this party for its own selfish interests. To you, the party is not what matters most; your other spin-off deals are what matter to you. Those need to be protected. That is why you are destroying the party," he said.

Govindan also asked whether the leadership was examining the reasons for the party's decline in a fair manner. "However, are you impartially examining why the party has fallen into such a state? If you attack Kunhikrishnan and me, will this party be saved?" he asked. V Kunhikrishnan is also a former CPI(M) leader who won from the CPI(M) stronghold of Payyanur as an independent with UDF support.

Referring to the killing of Revolutionary Marxist Party leader T P Chandrasekharan, who was allegedly hacked to death by CPI(M) activists in 2012, Govindan questioned whether his elimination had helped the party. Chandrasekharan was a CPI(M) leader who later formed the RMP after leaving the party. "If that were the case, didn't you eliminate T P Chandrasekharan? Did the party get saved after eliminating Comrade Chandrasekharan?" he asked.

The exchange in Thaliparamba came as the CPI(M) sought to explain its defeat in the constituency, with Vijayan blaming the loss on a sharp fall in the LDF vote and Govindan accusing the party leadership of pushing the organisation into decline.