Cracks widen in Kerala Left Front as CPI-CPM tensions surface in Palakkad

Palakkad: Relations between the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the CPM, the two key constituents of Kerala’s Left Democratic Front (LDF), have visibly deteriorated, with simmering tensions spilling into the public domain.

The latest flashpoint came when S. Ajayakumar, a CPM Palakkad district secretariat member, launched a scathing attack on the CPI during a public meeting in Mannoor, Ottappalam.

Ajayakumar accused CPI national general secretary Binoy Viswam of behaving like a “fourth-rate politician” and criticised the party for political opportunism, claiming that the CPI blames the CPM for defeats while taking full credit for victories. He also mocked the CPI’s electoral strength, asserting that it commands barely five per cent of the vote share in the state and lacks the capacity to win a single constituency independently.

Ajayakumar further questioned the CPI’s criticism of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other ministers, asking whether the departments managed by the CPI were beyond reproach.

The public outburst comes amid a series of developments that have strained the ruling front. One major source of friction arose when the Kerala government signed up for the PM SHRI schools programme without consulting either the LDF or the State Cabinet. The CPI objected strongly to what it saw as unilateralism by the CPM, forcing the government to withdraw from the scheme—a move that left visible scars within the alliance.

Tensions escalated further following the December local body elections, where the LDF’s performance fell short of expectations, triggering internal blame games and a perceptible cooling of camaraderie within the coalition.

Palakkad, particularly Ottappalam, has long been a stronghold of CPI–CPM rivalry, and Ajayakumar’s remarks are widely seen as indicative of deeper unease rather than an isolated provocation.

With Assembly elections expected in April or May, the public airing of differences threatens to complicate the Left’s efforts to project unity and stability. While the LDF leadership has so far tried to downplay the tensions, the recent war of words suggests that managing internal contradictions may be as challenging as confronting political opponents in the months ahead.

— IANS