Discontent is reportedly emerging within the CPM in Kerala following the party’s electoral setback, with grassroots-level leaders raising concerns over leadership style, decision-making and organisational functioning.

The internal churn has widened after the Kerala Assembly election 2026 setback, with discussions intensifying over leadership choices, including criticism linked to the appointment of Pinarayi Vijayan as opposition leader.

Within this backdrop, CPM Parassala area secretary S. Ajayakumar has reportedly said that Pinarayi Vijayan is “not fit to be opposition leader” and should resign from his MLA post. The remarks were made during an area committee meeting convened to review the election defeat, where wider organisational concerns also came up for discussion.

From public praise to internal criticism within CPM ranks

Ajayakumar’s remarks have drawn attention, given his earlier association with programmes that publicly praised Vijayan. In 2022, at a CPM district conference in Thiruvananthapuram, he chaired the organising committee of an event where a song described Vijayan as “karana bhuthan” (the cause or person behind) the party shining across the world.

The same conference also featured a large Thiruvathira performance, where hundreds of women danced to a song praising Vijayan as “karana bhuthan” and a “saviour”. The event was held a year after Vijayan was again sworn in as Chief Minister following the Kerala Assembly elections 2021.

Against this backdrop of earlier public praise within the same party platform, Ajayakumar is now among those voicing criticism of the same leadership he previously helped project in official CPM programmes.

Leadership approach and organisational concerns under scrutiny

Beyond individual remarks, broader questions have also been raised over leadership style and organisational functioning. Concerns have been flagged over Vijayan’s public interaction with SNDP general secretary Vellappally Natesan despite the latter’s communal remarks, with criticism within the party that such engagements may have alienated minority communities. A comment attributed to Vijayan comparing poet and social reformer Kumaran Asan and Vellappally Natesan has also been described as inappropriate in internal discussions.

Alongside this, some members have raised concerns that leadership changes are not being considered despite repeated electoral setbacks. Internal complaints also suggest cadres are increasingly being reduced to executing instructions without discussion, with remarks indicating that workers act on directions issued from the top leadership.

Not only Chief Minister-turned-party leader Vijayan, but also party state secretary M.V. Govindan is reportedly facing criticism from lower organisational levels.

Within this wider debate, it has also been alleged inside the party that the state government has not been corrected as it previously was.

Party members reportedly noted that after Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, successive state secretaries including A. Vijayaraghavan and M.V. Govindan have struggled to communicate decisions effectively to both the public and party workers.

M.V. Govindan’s language in press briefings has been described as difficult for ordinary people to follow, with a remark raised in the Adoor area committee questioning whether even he understands his own phrasing.