Kerala Assembly Elections 2026: On rebels and mini-screen actors

Twenty20, a corporate-backed political outfit, which had made some electoral gains in the last two local body elections in the eastern belt of Ernakulam district, tried something unheard of in Kerala politics by fielding two participants of popular TV shows as well as two woman actors of Malayalam cinema as their candidates, besides a few other professionals, including a lawyer, in the upcoming Assembly elections.

The organisation, which had dropped its alliance with the Aam Aadmi Party nearly a year ago, has now entered into a partnership with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to become the second largest constituent in the National Democratic Alliance in Kerala.

However, party supremo and industrialist Sabu M. Jacob had no inkling of the political humiliation that awaited him while announcing the list of candidates, after which it was revealed that the names of Veena Nair, an actor and the party’s candidate in Ettumanoor, and Lakshmipriya, another actor and the party’s candidate in Perumbavoor, didn’t figure in the voters’ list. Though the party quickly found replacements for the two, the political damage was already done.

It may take much time and effort for the party to overcome this setback it suffered even before hitting the road. 

Defectors galore

The election season has also witnessed red carpets being rolled out to defectors from rival camps, and having them already fielded as candidates, wasting no time on a cooling period in their new parties.

While political defections are not new in Kerala politics, the State is witnessing defections on an unprecedented scale, with all major political parties promoting the trend.

Kerala Assembly elections 2026: full schedule

It was probably the BJP, which is desperate to gain a political foothold in the State, which started encouraging dissidents and defectors from other parties by offering them organisational posts and seats to contest; the party has successfully tried the game elsewhere in the country.

Anil Antony and Padmaja Venugopal, the children of two senior Congress leaders A. K. Antony and K. Karunakaran respectively, had left for the BJP earlier much to the discomfiture of the Congress. At the same time, the BJP lost its fiery spokesperson, Sandeep Varrier, who crossed over to the Congress and has been fielded from the Thrikkaripur Assembly constituency.

However, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) was the greatest loser in this aspect as at least five of its senior party leaders walked over to rival political camps. Former State Minister G. Sudhakaran, Aisha Potty, S. Rajendran, P. K. Sasi and Karat Rasak, all former MLAs, have left the party fold in quick succession. Two senior CPI (M) leaders from Kannur, V. Kunjukrishnan and T. K. Govindan, also contributed their might to the organisational crisis by leaving the party. 

The party was in for further embarrassment, when on the eve of the deadline for filing nominations, Smitha Sundaresan, a CPI (M) area committee member from Varkala and a civic representative, decided to embrace the saffron flag. The BJP quickly fielded the young woman, who is also the daughter of veteran party leader Sundaresan, from the Varkala constituency, which is currently represented by CPI (M) leader V. Joy.

The party further had no luck in its attempts to poach former Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) legislator Abdurahiman Randathani, who had criticised the candidate selection in the IUML.

The Communist Party of India (CPI) too had its share of troubles with two of its former legislators, K. Ajith and C.C. Mukundan, leaving the party for the BJP. Mr. Mukundan joined the BJP after his unsuccessful attempts to secure Congress support.

Troubling signs

While leaders from the United Democratic Front (UDF) portrayed the unprecedented exodus of CPI (M) leaders from the party as an indication of the winds of political change in the State, the party dismissed it as ‘parliamentary fascination’ that had gripped a section of its leaders.

For a party in power for a decade together, the defections are a real challenge, both organisationally and politically. The poll outcome would be decisive for both the party and the dissidents as an electoral victory would strengthen the campaign of the rebels, besides giving it an ideological shade, which would trigger fresh trouble for the party.

Published – March 25, 2026 12:54 am IST