Kerala Local Elections: Govt. Campaigns on Welfare Work, Opposition Fishes for Issues

With the crucial local body elections just days away in Kerala, political parties have kicked off the last leg of election campaigning across the state. When the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) has focused on developmental activities of the state government over the past four and half years, the opposition – both, the Congress-led United Democratic front (UDF) and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), have been trying to create a smokescreen around it.

The UDF and BJP have built up a local understanding, with the former teaming up with the Welfare Party, the political wing of the Jamaat-e-Islami; the SDPI is also being highlighted in election campaigns.

While people across the country have dealt with increasing hardships following the COVID-19 lockdown, no one has starved in Kerala. The Community Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) led LDF government in the state has ensured food grain kits for each ration-card holder across the state. Over 88 lakhs families in the state got such kits. In September, the government had decided to extend giving out kits till December; food kits are being distributed food per month.

The social security pension for most pensioners, which was Rs 525 per month in 2016 when the Oommen Chandy led-UDF government had given up power, has been increased to Rs 1,400 per month as of now. The government has also decided to increase the amount by Rs 100 per person. Back then, the Chandy government had even failed to distribute it every month. When the current government had taken over, pensions for 19 months were pending, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in a press conference.

“The arrears worth Rs 1,473 crore 20 lakhs had been distributed to the pensioners by the current government,” said Vijayan.

Even when the state was under a financial crisis, social security pensions were distributed on time. The Congress and BJP, however, have been trying to disrupt pension distribution across the state. On Friday, Ranjith Ramesh, a collection agent at Aleppy North Cooperative Bank, who was on-ground to distribute pensions, was attacked by a group of BJP activists in Alappuzha district.

Other state government projects, like Life Mission, which focuses on ensuring safe and secure housing across the state, Haritha Keralam Mission, which focusing on a cleanliness and the Aardram Mission by the Health Department, along with others, have changed the face of the state. More than 2.2 lakh families in the state have been ensured secure houses.

Government schools in the state have also been upgraded, courtesy the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB). The KIIFB has also been investing in basic developmental activities in the state including building roads, bridges, uplifting government offices and hospitals across the state.

The opposition parties, however, have been harping on the alleged involvement of the “chief minister’s office” in the Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case. Since then, UDF and BJP have been coming up with allegations in all developmental activities in the state. However, they have failed to stick.

With the elections near, the SNC Lavalin case has surfaced once again. A petition was filed by the CBI in the Supreme Court against dismissing charges against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The trial court (Special Court CBI, Thiruvananthapuram) and the Kerala High Court already cleared him of all charges.

The case reportedly reached the Supreme Court on 20 occasions but has been adjourned time and again over the years, a report by The NewsMinute said. The CBI had submitted a detailed report on the case in the first week of October. A three-judge bench headed by Justice U.U. Lalit had warned the CBI that it should bring evidence to substantiate its claim for a probe against the Chief Minister, as the trial court and the Kerala High Court had already cleared him.

The Congress’ alliance with the Welfare Party and the former’s understanding with the BJP has worried secular forces in the state. However, the Congress and UDF leadership had been denying that an alliance had taken place, only to go public with it on Saturday.

The BJP has not even fielded candidates in 3,000 wards, including in their strongholds, like Kasargod. In Kasargod district alone, the BJP has not fielded candidates in 116 wards, including 12 wards in Nileshwar municipality, 15 divisions in Kasargod municipality and in 10 seats in Kanhangad municipality.

Read more: Kerala Local Body Elections: Is Congress-led UDF ‘Aligning’ With Communal Forces to Defeat LDF?

1,850 sensitive polling booths in Kerala in local body polls

The State Election Commission (SEC) has categorised 1,850 polling booths as ''sensitive'', and decided to introduce a webcast facility to keep a watch on poll proceedings there.

The booths, located in all the 14 districts of the southern state, were identified as sensitive based on a report by police chief Loknath Behera and State Election Commissioner V. Bhaskaran issued directions for webcasting, said a SEC statement.

The politically volatile north-Kerala district of Kannur, which had once witnessed several political murders, has the highest number of sensitive booths at 785, while Pathanamthitta has the lowest at 5. While Thiruvananthapuram district has 180 sensitive booths, Malappuam has100, Kozhikode (120), Palakkad (182), Kasaragod (100) and Wayanad is at 152. Comparatively, the northern districts have the higher number of sensitive booths.

Poll proceedings will be videographed in sensitive booths, the SEC said. The facility for videography would be installed in such booths where there is no webcasting, and it would be conducted at the expense of the Election Commission.

Either candidates or political parties can seek videography at their own expense in booths where there is no videography or webcasting, the Commission said, adding that they can ask permission from the district polling officials for the same.

A total of 74,899 candidates including 36,305 women and one transgender, are trying their luck in the upcoming local body polls, which is considered the curtain-raiser for the Assembly polls due next year. Malappuram district has 8,387 candidates, the highest in the state, while Wayanad has the lowest at 1,857.

While the first phase of the three-tier poll, scheduled on December 8, would cover the districts of Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki, the second phase is on December 10.

It would be held in Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Wayanad while Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod would go to the polls in the third and final phase on December 14. An electorate of over 2.76 crore would exercise their franchise to elect representatives to 941 gram panchayats, 152 block panchayats, 14 district panchayats, 86 municipalities and six municipal corporations. The votes would be counted on December 16.

With Inputs from PTI