After a fortnight-long whirlwind State-level campaigning, CPI(M) veteran V.S. Achuthanandan returned to his constituency Malampuzha on Sunday to focus more on grassroots-level campaigning. The key campaigner and crowd-puller for the Left Democratic Front (LDF) will leave no stone unturned in Malampuzha though the constituency continues to be a CPI(M) bastion that elected him with a clear majority three times in the past.
Mr. Achuthanandan, who campaigned for other LDF candidates in the district on Saturday, spent the whole of Sunday attending family get-togethers, neighbourhood meetings and panchayat-level conventions apart from door-to-door campaigning in Pudussery-Walayar region bordering Tamil Nadu. He has a special focus on Tamil speaking areas where AIADMK has engaged in a high-pitched campaign for its candidate.
During the past three elections, Mr. Achuthanandan seldom visited the deep interiors of the constituency which elected only CPI(M) stalwarts, including former Chief Minister E.K. Nayanar. Unlike in the previous elections, both the UDF and the BJP have ensured a high pitch triangular contest in the rural constituency where AIADMK too made its presence felt in the campaigning.
The high voltage campaigner for LDF, Mr. Achuthanandan addressed scores of rallies across the State to inspire the Left cadres before returning to Malampuzha. Meanwhile, pressure is mounting on Mr. Achuthanndan to attend more rallies outside Malampuzha in the coming days. The CPI(M) State committee will decide whether Mr. Achuthanandan’s presence would be required in some more constituencies ahead of the polling day.
On the polling day, Mr. Achuthanandan will cast his vote in his native Alappuzha. When asked about the threats of BDJS leader Vellappally Natesan that he would ensure defeat of Mr. Achuthanandan in Malampuzha, the veteran leader told The Hindu that such threats would not deter him from exposing Mr. Natesan, especially in the case of micro finance scam worth crores of rupees.
‘‘I am not against Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) and its members. My demand is that the SNDP leader must be subjected to criminal proceedings as he cheated the poor women of his own community,’’ said Mr. Achuthanandan. He said he was unmindful of the alleged challenges posed by controversial entrepreneur V.M. Radhakrishnan, whose alleged misdeeds were exposed by Mr. Achuthanandan.
