Congress' first transgender candidate in Alappuzha, a former comrade, says CPM has issues with sexual identity

The Congress party sprang a surprise when it announced its first list of nine candidates for the Alappuzha District Panchayat. The party has fielded transgender candidate Arunima M Kurup for the Vayalar division, making her Alappuzha’s first transgender candidate.

The 26-year-old is also the second transgender candidate nominated by the Congress for this year's local body elections, after Amaya Prasad, who contests from the Pothencode division of the Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayat.

Arunima's candidature carries additional political weight, as she has been tasked with capturing Vayalar, the CPI's sitting seat and a bastion of the LDF.

In the 2020 local body polls, the LDF swept the Alappuzha District Panchayat, winning 21 of the 23 seats, while the Congress secured only 2. Determined to reverse this outcome, the Congress is aiming to claim control of the district panchayat this time. In that context, Arunima’s candidature is being projected as both a political message and a critique of the LDF government’s development policies and its approach toward transgender welfare.

"I started my political journey with the Left. I was an active member of the SFI and even represented the CPM at the branch level. But I could not agree with certain positions taken by the SFI and the party. That is why I decided to leave," Arunima said. She added that although the Left often presents itself as a champion of renaissance values and a supporter of the transgender community, the ground level reality was different and they even questioned sexual identity and lineage of individuals.

Arunima, who currently serves as the State General Secretary of the KSU, said the Congress has always supported her and her ideals. "The Congress sees individuals as individuals and supports them throughout their journey. I was given this seat because the party trusts me," she said. Arunima criticised the CPM for failing to bring transgender individuals into mainstream politics and praised the Congress for taking steps to empower members of the community. "CPM speaks of inclusivity but never brings people like me into the mainstream," she said.

A native of Kanjikuzhy in Alappuzha, Arunima also criticised CPI Minister P Prasad, who is the MLA of Cherthala, which includes the Vayalar division. She alleged that he had done little to support the area's development. "The LDF has used its power to loot the people. The BJP is no different. Neither has done anything good for the public," she said.

Praising Arunima’s candidature as a strong political message of inclusivity, KSU Alappuzha District President A D Thomas said the Congress stands for pluralism and embraces people from diverse backgrounds—unlike the CPM. He added that the party’s decision to field Arunima is a political response to the "hollow claims" of the CPM, which often projects itself as the guardian of transgender rights.

Congress leader John Thomas, one of the two candidates who won seats in the district panchayat in the previous elections, said the party is determined to capture all the seats. The district panchayat now has 24 seats following delimitation.

Arunima said her candidacy would inspire members of the transgender community to believe in possibilities once considered unattainable. "It’s all about our mindset. That is what drives us forward," she said.

Arunima was the first president of the Kerala Pradesh Transgender Congress (KPTC), the transgender wing of the KPCC. She is currently a final-year LLB student. She previously served as the SFI Kanjikuzhy area vice-president and as a CPI(M) Utharapally branch committee member before joining the Congress eight years ago.