Real issues take a back seat

‘Where have all the issues gone?’ seems to be a common refrain as Kerala enters the final week of electioneering for the April 9 Assembly polls amid the aggressive rhetoric and sledging over covert political pacts and ‘deals.’ The impression appears to be strong that hotly debated issues from the past five years of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) rule have been relegated to the back seat in the run-up to poll day.

Between the allegations of CPI(M)-SDPI deals, UDF-BJP pacts, or LDF-BJP pacts, the preoccupation of political parties and fronts with ‘development’ persists as an election ‘trend’ this time as well, but with minimal emphasis on related environmental issues, say political observers and environmentalists.

Some of the major themes that had dominated news headlines earlier included the human-wildlife conflict, climate change and its deepening impact, the State’s grievances related to fiscal federalism, and the plight of the State’s health sector. In some cases, such as the human-wildlife conflict or issues pertaining to the State’s farming communities, the issues in question have been restricted to the impacted regions or the Assembly constituencies where they are of immediate relevance.

“Over the past several years, Kerala politics has tended to sweep aside ideological issues. Even in terms of policies, there is sort of a congruence, albeit not 100%, among the various actors. When there is clear ideological and policy difference on issues, political parties tend to focus on those differences. But when power alone becomes the ideology, there is nothing else to speak about,” notes J. Prabhash, political commentator and former professor, Department of Political Sciences, University of Kerala. “In a scenario where every party is every other party, ideological differences tend to get glossed over,” he said.

In manifestos

While continued development of the State, social welfare measures and attracting fresh investment and job opportunities figure prominently in the election manifestos of major political fronts that have been released ahead of the elections, there were also announcements pertaining to environmental conservation. The LDF manifesto released on Thursday, for instance, mentioned that if it returns to power, the front would ensure ‘total protection’ of forests and resolve environmental issues caused by unscientific interventions. But by and large, environmental issues have tended to be far from the political discourse during this election season.

“The absence of discussion pertaining to the environment has been a notable factor in the current elections. Everyone is discussing development. But development is also something that has implications for the environment since the natural resources vital to development is sourced from nature,” says V. Harilal, district convener of the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad.

Meanwhile, two other issues that have grabbed attention during the current election season were the West Asia crisis and its impact on the local economy, and, more recently, the implications of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha last month.