Thiruvananthapuram: LDF on Tuesday claimed that the local body by-election results indicated a political shift in its favour. CPM state secretary M V Govindan alleged UDF wins were aided by an open understanding with BJP, whose votes shifted to UDF in several places, particularly Thiruvananthapuram district. He called UDF govt BJP’s ‘B team’.UDF’s margins fell sharply in its Kozhikode and Ernakulam corporation seats, he said. In Kozhikode’s Kuttichira division, which Fathima Tahiliya had won by 2,275 votes, UDF margin shrank to 436. Govindan called it a near defeat in a division with a sizeable Muslim population. In Ernakulam’s Ayyappankkavu division, its margin dropped from 1,183 to 549 votes.LDF retained Mattannur’s Uruvachal division and increased its vote share, while it won a Chittur municipality division through a draw after the contest ended in a tie. Govindan said in the seven block panchayat divisions, its tally rose from three to five and UDF’s fell from four to two.CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said UDF’s tally fell from 22 seats to 19 and LDF’s rose from 15 to 18, a verdict reflecting the people’s “general mood and political pulse”.Viswam also claimed that voters had rejected BJP, which he accused of making electoral manipulation a political strategy. He said the trend was evident across Kerala and argued that the results showed that voters wanted LDF to move forward while upholding the values of Left politics.He said the verdict imposed greater responsibility on LDF and CPI and that the party would take the lessons from the results forward while adhering to Left values. Viswam also thanked voters who supported LDF in the by-elections.
