A galaxy of high-profile BJP and Congress leaders has descended on Kerala in a last-minute bid to turn the tide of the electoral battle against the LDF government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Prakash Javadekar and Smriti Irani, BJP national president J. P. Nadda, and others have gone on whirlwind tours covering large swathes of the State. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has spearheaded the UDF election campaign. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Sachin Pilot, Salman Khurshid, Jairam Ramesh, A.K. Antony and Shashi Tharoor lend leverage to the UDF’s election pitch.
Guarded approach
The LDF had approached the poll campaign with a measure of confidence initially. At least three pre-poll surveys had given the ruling front an edge over its rivals. The LDF’s emphatic win in the local body polls in 2020 had imbued it with a degree of confidence. However, the surge of crowds at BJP and Congress rallies has prompted the LDF to strike a more guarded approach in the campaign’s final stretch. Tellingly, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has cautioned LDF workers against placing undue trust in pollsters and asked them to guard against overconfidence.
The Congress and the BJP have attempted to wrest the electoral narrative from the LDF by deploying national-level influencers. Top leaders of both parties seemed to target undecided voters.
Different styles
Mr. Modi has obliquely referred to the UAE gold smuggling case that had dogged the LDF government. Referring to the Sabarimala issue, he said the Kerala government had “used lathis against devotees and trampled on their faith.”
Mr. Gandhi has talked about the LDF’s alleged attempt to allow foreign trawlers to raid the State’s traditional fishing grounds. He also promised a law to preserve Sabarimala traditions. Ms. Vadra spotlighted governmental corruption, nepotism, crimes against women, “inherent misogyny” in the LDF, political murders, backdoor appointments and unemployment.
In contrast, the LDF has opted for a low-key approach. Apart from a few and comparatively less frenzied roadshows by CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat, it has focused on door-to-door campaigning.
It has strived to make the elections a referendum of its governance record and management of the COVID-19 crisis. The LDF has positioned itself as a bulwark against the BJP’s brand of majoritarian politics.
The coalition has exuded confidence that its electoral pitch would resonate among voters, particularly minorities, who form a bulk of the polity and possess the political heft to tip the balance in favour of one front or another.
