LDF workers celebrate victory in Vallikeezhu division of Kollam Corporation on Saturday | Photo credit: C. Sureshkumar
The much-anticipated meeting of the leadership of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) on Tuesday will assess the situation after the local body elections.
Ahead of the LDF meeting, the respective state secretariats of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) will meet here on Monday.
With the LDF allies reportedly divided over the issue leading to the unexpected spate of violence, the ruling alliance is also likely to consider new strategies to chart a path back to retain power in the 2026 assembly elections.
An insider said the focus is on regaining lost political ground with voters of all caste, religion, education, profession and age demographics to win back what he termed as easily ceded battleground constituencies in the 2026 assembly polls.
According to party insiders, the LDF will primarily examine whether the government’s loud propaganda about an expanded social safety net and achievements in infrastructure development has crowded out the government’s conversations on local issues relevant to voters, which are key to local votes.
They said the LDF’s campaign seems to be focused more on social anxieties, especially the rise of communal forces, the ominous rise of caste and religious identity politics and threats to federalism rather than the immediate and internal concerns of the electorate. The LDF talks about the concerns of voters over the disruption caused by the expansion of NH-66, human-wildlife conflict, cratering of the rural economy, accessibility crisis, bad neighborhood roads, monsoon floods, slump in the prices of cash crops, decline in civic services and the growing affordability crisis affecting the working class, among other livelihood issues, have been relegated to shock as one of the major livelihood issues.
The Sabarimala problem
Some allies reportedly felt that the LDF may have backed a wrong horse by betting on the Sabarimala Global Ayyappa Sangham to bring on board influential Hindu social organizations in a crucial election year. The resulting temple theft controversy gave the opposing alliances a sensational push to diminish the LDF’s chances of winning the hustings. In addition, the United Democratic Front (UDF), which made surprise electoral gains, campaigned against the alleged delay in the expulsion of Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) members arrested for temple theft, highlighting the “swift expulsion” of Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil from the Congress after the police accused him of rape. It also highlighted the LDF’s “secret signing” of the PM-SHRI scheme to release federal funding for school education and the Centre’s “anti-labour” labor code to portray the LDF as a representative of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). LDF insiders also felt that the “hostile right-wing corporate” media ecosystem had emerged as a powerful echo chamber for the UDF and NDA, which the ruling front felt it could not counter convincingly on air.
Published – 14 Dec 2025 20:42 IST
