One of the prominent agrarian belts which has undergone far-reaching socio-political changes with the passage of time is Perambra, where the Assembly election is special for many reasons.
First, it is significant for being represented by Minister T.P. Ramakrishnan. Second, his political opponent in the last election, the Kerala Congress (M), is now an ally of the Left Democratic Front (LDF), making the polls special for the electorate.
In 2016, Mr. Ramakrishnan’s victory margin against KC (M)’s Mohammed Iqbal was just 4,101 votes. For the KC (M), it was a reason to rejoice, as the LDF’s victory margin in 2011 was 15,269.
The steady growth of the opponent, which was slightly a fear factor for the LDF, is now not a concern for it. Interestingly, both will fight together for a common candidate this time.
The LDF hopes to secure 90% of votes in the constituency with the new tie-up. Though a section of KC (M) backed by the United Democratic Front (UDF) is not happy with the alliance, LDF leaders claimed that it would not make a major impact. Since the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is yet to garner even 6% of votes, the LDF is confident of an easy win.
The erstwhile Payyarmalanadu now has 10 panchayats — Arikkulam, Chakkittappara, Changaroth, Cheruvannur, Keezhariyur, Koothali, Meppayur, Nochad, Perambra, and Thurayur. A majority of these panchayats are LDF strongholds.
At the same time, UDF leaders claimed that the LDF would have no respite from its decreasing margin owing to controversies involving the government.
Perambra has 1,92,529 voters, which will make the contest tough for both the LDF and the UDF. Though there were 1,79,658 voters in the previous elections, the voter turnout was only 1,53,512. As a proactive step, both the fronts are now keen to improve the turnout and victory margin.
Since 1980, the constituency has been an LDF fortress. For the UDF, the trump card is to field a popular candidate. The UDF camp is also for a heated campaign in the backdrop of the alleged corruption charges against the government and agrarian issues.
