Comrades
in trouble
 Kerala
boasts of being India’s model state. In terms of all indices
of welfarism, whether literacy or the gender ratio, infant mortality
or life expectancy. Yet, 51 per cent of the people surveyed claimed
to be unhappy with the performance of the Nayanar-led LDF government.
The Marxists did the unthinkable: fearing an anti-incumbency wave
they changed the party leadership. Neither was Nayanar given the
ticket to contest nor were important members of his cabinet.
A relatively younger generation under the leadership of V.S. Achuthanandan
replaced the older set. This was also supposed to be the best medicine
for the LDF’s perennial problems of deep-seated factionalism.
After all, Nayanar was not given the party ticket even last time.
Yet, he not only managed to become chief minister but also prevented
Achuthanandan from holding a cabinet portfolio. However, even the
change in top leadership has not helped the Marxists much this time.
They are still battling the gussa factor. Law and order, especially
political violence has been their biggest sin. So are inflation,
communal disharmony and the condition of roads and transport, as
surveys show.
But the biggest bloomer was made by the top leadership. The fact
that Achuthanandan changed his traditional constituency of Mararikulam
in and is now contesting from what is considered as a ‘‘safe
seat’’ of Palakkad, where the CPI-M has never lost in
the past, has certainly send a wrong signal among the electorate.
If the chief ministerial candidate is not sure of winning his own
seat, how can the Left Front romp home? On top of that the Marxists’
desperation is evident as they have been forced into the biggest
historical compromise. They have even joined hands with what was
considered the ‘‘opium of the masses.’’ The
CPI-M has fielded Father Mathai Nooranal, a Syrian orthodox Church
priest, in order to woo the Christians. No doubt, most polls predict
the return of the UDF.
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