Kerala Left Signals Course Correction After Setback In Civic Polls

Key constituents of Kerala’s ruling Left, the CPI(M) and the CPI, on Monday acknowledged the need for a possible course correction following their poor performance in the recently concluded civic polls, in which their rival, the Congress, led its alliance to a decisive victory while the BJP made notable and unexpected gains.

Both Left parties held top-level review meetings on Monday to assess shortcomings in their election strategy and in the policies of the incumbent LDF government.

The results came as a shock to the ruling front months ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, in which the LDF is seeking a third consecutive term since 2016.

LDF convener and CPI(M) leader T P Ramakrishnan said the reasons behind the public response to the Left Front would be examined. “If there have been mistakes on our part, they will be corrected. Public opinion will be sought,” he said.

He also acknowledged the BJP’s electoral gains in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, where the BJP wrested power from the LDF. “We accept this fact and will take corrective measures,” he said.

CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam told reporters that the LDF had suffered a defeat and that party committees were duty-bound to take the verdict seriously. “The first phase of this process is the meetings being held on Monday. We will genuinely examine and identify flaws, if any, and move forward after correcting mistakes,” he said.

Expressing confidence in a turnaround, Viswam said, “Kerala's future will be the LDF.” Noting the limited time left before the Assembly elections, he said the necessary corrections would be identified and implemented swiftly.

“The strength of the LDF lies in taking corrective measures. If mistakes have occurred, we will not hesitate to accept them or rectify them. This is a communist value that the CPI, CPI(M) and all LDF parties uphold,” he said.

The CPI has also appealed to party workers and members of the public to write to the leadership, highlighting issues and suggesting corrective steps.

Party MP P Santhosh Kumar said a campaign had been carried out against the LDF over the alleged Sabarimala gold loss incident. “Certain developments facilitated such a campaign. From an electoral perspective, it is a fact that this helped the (Congress-led) UDF by creating an ideological crisis,” he said.

He added that while the Sabarimala issue — relating to the entry of women into the Lord Ayyappa temple — did not escalate as it had during 2018–19, the recent gold loss incident had some impact on the LDF’s prospects. “Even though we won the ward where Sabarimala is located, campaigns and songs linked to the incident raised questions in the public mind and likely affected the election outcome,” Kumar said.