Realize your mistake and work to strengthen CPI(M), Pinarayi tells LDF supporters

Leader of the Opposition in Kerala and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) leader Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday (August 30, 2026) asked Left Democratic Front (LDF) supporters for the Taliparamba Assembly constituency, a traditional CPI(M) bastion where the Goback Goudan United Democratic Front (CPIUDF) was elected, to realize their mistake and work to strengthen the party.

“Some of you would repent for electing an opportunist like TK Govindan. I mean the LDF supporters who voted for Mr. Govindan. They should realize the party sentiments and take a right political stand. An opportunist like Mr. Govindan won here and we were defeated across Keralam. We accept the defeat as necessary. But Mr. Taliparam needs to be seen. victory forever It’s time for the party to move moving forward in unison,” said Mr. Vijayan.

He was addressing a public meeting of the CPI(M) at Mayyil in the constituency.

Mr. Vijayan said the defeat should not be seen as the end of the party’s political prospects or a permanent change in the political allegiance of the constituency. However, according to him, the sharp decline in the LDF’s vote share requires serious scrutiny.

Mr. Vijayan said the LDF’s vote share in Taliparamba has come down from over 52% in 2021 to around 41% in the last election. An independent candidate backed by the UDF got around 47% of the votes in the recent parliamentary elections. This was only about 2.9% higher than the votes polled by independent candidate Narayanan Nambiar in 1977, suggesting that the latest result should not be interpreted as a major reshuffle of the constituency.

Mr. Vijayan said an independent candidate’s victory should not be considered permanent, citing the electoral history of the constituency.

“Propaganda against CPI(M)”

Mr. Vijayan attributed the failure partly to sustained propaganda against the CPI(M) and the intervention of right-wing forces. He alleged that the Congress-led UDF and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), along with sections of the media, were working to weaken the LDF and discredit the CPI(M).

Mr. Vijayan said that the CPI(M) had survived serious internal and external problems in the past because its workers remained united. “The party has previously faced factionalism and instances of members sharing information with political opponents, but it has overcome such crises through collective action and organizational discipline,” he said.

He said the LDF has accepted the people’s verdict but will work to regain public confidence.

Mr. Vijayan criticized the Congress-led UDF government, saying it was increasingly accommodating to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) agenda on issues including secularism, education and Waqf.

He criticized the Union government for pro-business policies, weakening social measures and workers’ rights and an increasingly aggressive communal agenda. “Kerala has historically resisted the RSS-led Sangh Parivar agenda through political and legal battles. The new UDF government has started moving away from this tradition,” he claimed.

Mr. Vijayan said the immediate task before the CPI(M) was to face its weaknesses, restore organizational unity and reconnect with the electorate. Taliparambo’s failure, he said, should therefore be seen as a call to rebuild the party rather than the end of its political influence.

Published – 30 Aug 2026 21:31 IST