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Informist, Tuesday, Apr. 7, 2026

 

NEW DELHI – The Indian National Congress-led United Democratic Front is confident of coming to power in Kerala after a gap of 10 years while the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front is banking on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's leadership to retain power in the state for an unprecedented third consecutive term.

 

Campaigning for the assembly election in Kerala ended 1800 IST Tuesday. The state will vote for the new assembly of 140 members on Thursday.

 

In 2021, the CPI(M)-led alliance had won a huge majority with 99 legislators, including three independents. The CPI(M) alone won 62 seats, followed by the Communist Party of India with 17 and Kerala Congress (Mani) with five.

 

The Congress-led alliance won the remaining 41 seats, with the Congress taking 21, the Indian Union Muslim League 15, and the Kerala Congress two. Whether this alliance would be able to bridge the gap and grab power will be decided by 27.1 million voters of Kerala across 30,471 polling stations Thursday. The results will be declared May 4.

 

The Congress has announced five guarantees for the people, including health insurance coverage of up to INR 2.5 million for every family, free bus travel for women, a monthly stipend of INR 1,000 for college-going girls, monthly pension of INR 3,000 for senior citizens, and interest-free loans of up to INR 500,000 for young entrepreneurs.

 

The Congress-led alliance believes anti-incumbency against the ruling coalition is strong this time. It has tried to make the Sabarimala gold theft case an issue to highlight the alleged corruption of the Marxist-led alliance. It has also alleged that Vijayan is working in collusion with the Bharatiya Janata Party.

 

The ruling coalition on its part is showcasing the "achievements" of its government led by Vijayan over the past 10 years. The government has several development projects like the Vizhinjam International Seaport and construction of highways to its credit.

 

Vijayan has led the alliance to a thumping victory for two consecutive terms, a first in Kerala's "turnstile" politics where power oscillated between the leftist and the Congress-led alliance every five years, until 2021. The United Democratic Front, on the other hand, has not projected anyone as its chief ministerial face, though V.D. Satheesan, leader of the Opposition in the outgoing assembly, and senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala are seen as key contenders.

 

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which is trying to make inroads into Kerala politics and is known elsewhere for its inflammatory communal rhetoric, is sticking to the "development" pitch and even speaking of communal harmony in its election manifesto for the state.  End

 

Reported by Asim Khan

Edited by Rajeev Pai

 

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