Kollam: A wave of resignations, rebel candidates, and seat disputes has swept through Kollam district as major political fronts grapple with internal dissent ahead of the local body elections.

A major exodus unfolded in the CPI’s Kollam East mandalam committee after the party finalised its Corporation candidates. Mandalam committee member M S Anoop, Eravipuram local secretary R Unnikrishnan, and branch secretaries Sunilkumar and B Dayapalan, along with 17 party workers and their families, resigned en masse from the CPI.

The revolt centres around the swap of the Pattathanam and Bharanikavu divisions, which were won by the CPM and CPI, respectively, in the last elections. Acting on the district committee’s instructions, the CPI mandalam committee had identified a woman candidate for Bharanikavu and had even begun campaigning.

However, on the eve of announcing the candidate list, the CPI named a former councillor who had earlier faced disciplinary action as its candidate for Pattathanam. The rebels allege that the district committee finalised a deal with the CPM without consulting the lower units.

Meanwhile, in Pathanapuram grama panchayat, four CPI local committee members and a branch secretary quit over decisions in Mancode and Chithalvetty wards. Although the LDF’s internal pact allocated Mancode to the CPM and Chithalvetty to the CPI, leaders allowed CPI mandalam committee member K P Raju to contest Mancode as an independent.

The CPM fielded its own candidate in Chithalvetty. Following this, all five rebels later joined the CPM in the presence of area secretary H Najeeb Muhammed, dealing a blow to the front in both wards. In 2020, SDPI won Chithalvetty by 52 votes, while CPM won Mancode.

“There are a few issues which have cropped up in some quarters. But it's nothing to be concerned about. We have been able to complete candidate selection in most areas without conflict. Almost 95 per cent of the new seats created after the delimitation exercise were divided between the allies like CPI and KC(B) amicably. The conflicts in the remaining 5 per cent are being resolved,” said CPI's Kollam District Secretary P S Supal.

But trouble in LDF is not restricted to CPI alone. In Kulathupuzha, CPM’s P Lailabeevi, a four-time member and panchayat president, resigned after being denied the Town ward seat. She will contest as a rebel candidate against CPM candidate Shiny Baiju.

Meanwhile, several Kerala Congress (B) leaders have shifted to the RSP in Nadumuruppu and Vazhappara in Pathanapuram, further complicating the LDF’s prospects.

Dissent is also brewing within the KC(M), now part of the LDF. Pathanapuram constituency president Muhammad Qasim and KYF(M) district vice president Vilakkudi Shanavas are contesting as independents after being denied seats. KC(M) leaders allege the LDF promised more seats during negotiations but later backed out. Shanavas has since been expelled from the Youth Front (M).

Adding to the turbulence, the NCP announced it would contest independently in five divisions of the Kollam Corporation. The party will contest in the Mulamkadakam, Thangassery, Kureepuzha West, Thirumullavaram, and Thevally divisions. NCP election committee chairman Madathil Rajesh accused the CPM and CPI of having an “authoritarian attitude” and denying the party its due seats.

UDF battles seat-sharing friction and rebels
In the Corporation, the UDF’s internal friction surfaced when the Forward Bloc claimed the Kureepuzha West division under the seat-sharing pact. There is also an objection to the fact that the person who is currently working as the Congress constituency secretary has been made the Forward Bloc candidate. In protest, the Congress division committee declared Shanavas an independent candidate and even launched wall graffiti in his support.

“Congress has won the seat at Kureepuzha West in the past. The Congress division committee had protested against giving the seat to the Forward Bloc last time too. We even lost the assembly seat due to the conflict. This time around, a team including senior leaders such as VS Sivakumar and Adoor Prakash held discussions with Forward Bloc to yield the seat to Congress. Unfortunately, the negotiations failed. We are still trying to appease the Congress division to come around,” Congress leader Bindhu Krishna told Onmanorama.

The Congress leader is, however, optimistic about the party’s candidate list. “Out of 56 seats, Congress is contesting 38. Except for differences in two or three seats, everything else is unanimous and we are confident that even those minor issues can be resolved,” she said. Following delimitation, one more ward was added to Kollam corporation.

Meanwhile, posters also appeared outside the DCC office accusing Bindhu Krishna of ‘selling the Koloorvila seat to NSS’ and becoming a ‘BJP agent’. She dismissed this as propaganda from rival fronts. “We won the Koloorvila seat when it was reserved for women last time. But it’s a general seat this time and giving it to a woman candidate would limit the options for the male Congress workers. The current candidate is a former Congress committee president and block vice president. These posters are just attempts by other parties to drive a wedge in Congress where everything is going smoothly,” she said.

In Kulathupuzha, Sisily Job, Mahila Congress district vice president and four-time member, quit the Congress after being denied the Thikkalkarikath seat. She is contesting as a rebel. In Chadayamangalam, former Congress member Azeem Ambalathil — known for his activism against a local rock quarry — has filed nomination as an independent after being overlooked for the Poredom ward.

In Panayam panchayat, two former Congress ward members — Jayshree Madhulal and A V Priyashree — have joined the CPM and will contest the same wards they won last time under UDF.

“We even offered them block panchayat seats and the sitting women’s seat, but they insisted on the same ward seat. Later, we realised they had already planned to join the LDF. We were ready to negotiate with them. But they jumped ship even before the negotiations took place,” Bindu Krishna said.

Meanwhile, the UDF is hoping to convert the seats allotted to the RSP into solid gains. In the last Kollam Corporation elections, the RSP won four of the 10 seats it contested. This time, the party has been allocated 11 of the 56 seats. The only point of unease is Thevally, a seat handed to the party at the last minute in place of another ward. Thevally was won by the BJP in 2020.

“The BJP won six seats last time, but they have done nothing as the Opposition in the Corporation. They have not organised a single protest. The UDF, on the other hand, has raised every issue, including the government’s anti-development stance and corruption. Even if the BJP improves its tally, it is likely to cut into the LDF’s vote share,” RSP leader NK Premachandran told Onmanorama.

The Kollam MP added that infighting within the LDF and BJP has narrowed the contest. “The LDF has rebel candidates and internal fights like never before. The UDF, meanwhile, is better prepared this time. We finalised our list well before the LDF, and that will work to our advantage. We have a strong mix of candidates,” he said.