It was not the best of times. An outwardly gung-ho government struggled hard to cover up the bleeding coffers, making a pale attempt to appear organised and optimistic. Chinks could be seen everywhere as development projects were affected, roads battered, even welfare pensions disrupted and people disillusioned. Worse, two back-to-back massive landslides on a single night had left a deep wound, flattened two villages in Wayanad, killing around 420 people and leaving another 1,000 homeless.
Stifled cries of women artists from the Malayalam film world unravelled before the general public as the Hema Committee report was released, leaving the film fraternity disintegrated. Some tall personalities were exposed before the public eye as allegations kept coming like arrows from the dark, leaving the icons blood-stained.
MT Vasudevan Nair lashes out against authoritarianism
A lone voice of a revered intellectual reflected the anguish about the authoritarian ways of a communist leader, even as the insouciant motley crowd of common people watched the political absurdities with indifference and helplessness. When literary stalwart MT Vasudevan Nair broke his silence and reminded the current leadership of CPM about the dangers of the Stalinistic approach, the entire communist leadership crawled into shells of silence, and the common people celebrated the enlightened comparisons highlighted by MT about the selflessness of EMS Namboothirippad and the current leadership.
The absurdity called political charade
On another sphere, ensconced in the comfort of their drawing rooms, common people watched the endless debates on television, switching channels while drinking their coffee or tea, showing little interest in the ongoing charade of political spectacle where so many people have changed their colours, showing little respect for the people who believed them once. People have become tired of watching the leaders shouting, trading high-decibel expletives on TVs and phones, desperately realising the arguments take them nowhere, still coming back to the screens as if addicted or hallucinated, watching the same people shouting about some other topics.
Wayanad landslides
A night of disaster on July 30 had left a deep wound in the conscience of Kerala and literally wiped out two villages, as two back-to-back landslides on a fateful night had flattened Mundakkai and Chooralmala in Wayanad district. According to the official data, 420 persons had lost their lives, and around 1,000 people had lost their houses. The tears of the survivors have not yet dried up, and it would take long for these villages to get back to normalcy, or something akin to normalcy. The heart-wrenching stories of the tragically stricken people of Wayanad have left Kerala in deep sorrow. The disaster was too severe for the crash-strapped government to withstand.
Two deaths
Two controversial deaths had literally shaken CPM as they were positioned on the wrong side of these unfortunate deaths—one that of a veterinary student, JS Sidharthan (20), who was found dead in his hostel. Later, it was found out that he had suffered multiple injuries and was subjected to mob lynching by hostel mates. Though so many tears were shed and so much uproar was raised, the investigation has not reached anywhere yet. It is alleged that CPM provided protection for the SFI activists of the college who were being implicated behind the cruel ragging.
Another death, which had kicked up a literal hell for CPM as a decisive byelection was nearing, was the death of Kannur ADM Naveen Babu. Like in the death of Sidharthan, here also CPM was placed at the centre of the controversy, as one of their top leaders in the district, upcoming young leader PP Divya, then district panchayat president, had played a dubious role in the death of Naveen Babu, as an alleged abettor. It was following her malicious speech, alleging foul play by Naveen Babu during the farewell meeting, which was cited as the reason behind the death of ADM, as he was found dead hanging inside his quarters the next morning. A man with a clean official record, as was quoted by revenue minister K Rajan, the death of Naveen Babu was bewailed, and public indignation shot up, forcing CPM to do some firefighting as they removed Divya from the post of district panchayat president. Though CPM expressed their support to the family of Naveen Babu, which is a traditionally pro-CPM family, both the family and the public felt cheated, as Divya was protected on the other hand by CPM. Naveen Babu’s wife Manjusha’s lone fight still goes on, but the legal intricacies involved will take long, as in many other cases in the past, which would also push this unfortunate death into, in all likelihood, the pages of forgetfulness of history.
Search for Arjun, the driver missed in the landslide at Shirur
It was a relentless, exhaustive search as the media untiringly followed up each and every development. Arjun, a 32 year old lorry driver from Kozhikode, who was on his trip back to his house was trapped in the landslide on July 16 at Shirur. Though a search was conducted initially, his mortal remains could not be found. Following intense pressure from the media and government of Kerala, an intensified search was started amidst hostile climate conditions. After 72 days of combined search by various rescue forces, the mortal remains of Arjun was retrieved from the depths of river Gangavali along with the parts of lorry. He was given an emotional farewell by the people of Kerala.
Vizhinjam International Seaport
On the development front, the opening up of Vizhinjam International Seaport was one of the landmark achievements of Kerala Government. Though mired in controversies over the ownership of the project, the port is expected to give the state the much needed boost in the international map. Both UDF and LDF claimed the ownership of the project as UDF said that it was former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy who had started the project. But, LDF said that, it was the will power of the LDF government which made the project a reality.
Gallant march of Congress and Suresh Gopi’s historic win
What was most surprising in the Lok Sabha election held in April this year was the historic victory of actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi from Thrissur Constituency. Though the defeat of CPM was a foregone conclusion, the margin of defeat of many candidates was quite unbelievable. The defeats in Kannur, Kasaragod, Vadakara, and Kozhikode, which were once considered as the unassailable citadels of CPM, were both shocking and humiliating for the leadership. The only relief for CPM in the state was the victory of K Radhakrishnan from Alathur constituency. The ‘kafir screenshot’ controversy in Vadakara had further dented the image of CPM before the general public.
Byelection - No clear victors
The byelection was held amidst so many controversies like the ‘Thrissur Pooram’ disruption, the tainted image of ADGP Ajith Kumar, shifting of loyalties of P Sarin and Sandeep Varrier, and the blue trolley bag. There were no clear winners as UDF retained their sitting seats of Palakkad assembly seat and Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, and LDF retained their sitting seat of Alathur assembly seat. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra won from Wayanad with a huge majority of over four lakh votes and made her entry to the Lok Sabha for the first time. Rahul Mamkootathil of Congress too had registered his first political victory in Palakkad with a handsome majority of over 18,000 votes. UR Pradeep of CPM had retained LDF’s stronghold Alathur as well.
EP Jayarajan: Controversies chased him
It was on the day of polling of the Lok Sabha election on April 26 that the news of EP Jayarajan’s meeting with Prakash Javadekar was made into a political discussion in the media. Though Jayarajan had agreed that he had indeed met Javadekar a few months back, he insisted that it was only a chance meeting and had nothing to do with politics, CM Pinarayi Vijayan had come up with a strong remark saying that Jayarajan should be more careful in the future while choosing friends. Following this, EP had lost his position as LDF convener, which had further estranged him from the party. Surprisingly, yet another controversy erupted on the polling day of the Alathur and Wayanad byelections, as pages from his purported autobiography, which contained some damaging remarks, appeared in the media, embarrassing both the CPM and Jayarajan. Later, DC Books, the publishing house, confirmed that they had not entered into a proper legal contract agreement with Jayarajan in connection with his autobiography, which Jayarajan says is not finished yet.
Thrissur Pooram Disruption
The disruption of Thrissur Pooram following the alleged unnecessary interventions of the police had put the LDF government on the defensive as the ire of the people of Thrissur turned against the government and police after this incident. Though conspiracy theories were presented from various quarters, no clear answers regarding this have come out so far. The entry of Suresh Gopi, the candidate of Thrissur Lok Sabha, at the venue in an ambulance too had added to the confusion and controversy. LDF MLA PV Anvar had alleged that ADGP Ajith Kumar had played a crucial role in disrupting the Pooram. Though Anvar failed to prove his allegation, he was ousted from LDF.
A police officer, who stole the limelight
ADGP Ajith Kumar was the man of controversy in the year 2024. Opposition leader VD Satheesan and Nilambur MLA PV Anvar, who had won as an LDF-supported independent candidate, had alleged that ADGP had met RSS leaders Dattathreya Hosabale and Ram Madhav. Both of them had alleged that Ajith Kumar had met these leaders as the representative of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, as he wanted the support of BJP in many cases, including CMRL monthly payoffs, in which his daughter Veena Thykanti is also involved. It is also alleged that Ajith Kumar was the person who had unleashed the police to disrupt the Pooram to make it easier for BJP to win the Thrissur constituency.
Anvar, the rabble-rouser
Nilambur MLA PV Anvar was another person who for some time stole the prime time of TV channels, as he had unleashed an array of allegations against ADGP Ajith Kumar and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s political secretary, P Sasi. Though he had succeeded in turning the attention of the media on him for some time, since he doesn’t have the firepower enough to disturb either the CPM nor ADGP, as the year reaches its conclusion, he has been reduced to nothing but a ‘nuisance’ for CPM, and they have decided to ignore him.
Change of guards, change of colours
Following Anvar’s antagonistic stand against CPM, for whom he had waged a ruthless campaign on social media against the rivals of LDF, two more prominent personalities had changed their loyalties without any apparent remorse. P Sarin, who was the digital media coordinator of Congress, had walked out of Congress in a huff as he was denied a ticket to contest from Palakkad by Congress. Instead of him, Congress gave the chance to Rahul Mamkootathil, who eventually won, defeating Sarin himself, who had sought political asylum in the LDF camp, getting what he wanted—a seat to contest. Apart from this, another young leader too has changed his colour, from saffron to tricolour. Sandeep Varrier, once labelled as the future leader of BJP, had joined Congress on the eve of the Palakkad byelection. But things have not stopped here, as more leaders have changed their guards: former BJP Wayanad district secretary KP Madhu joined Congress, and Mullassery Madhu, CPM Mangalapuram area secretary, joined BJP too. Things have reached a stage where leaders no longer hold on to an ideology, and what they see before them is only a political opportunity.
Another controversy is brewing up
Yet another controversy is brewing up in Munambam in Ernakulam district, as around 600 families have been waging an agitation to protect their houses, as the Waqf Board claims the land they live on is Waqf property. A judicial commission has been appointed by the government, and the issue is sure to cause a long-lasting impact on the socio-political spectrum of Kerala.
Death of MM Lawrence
CPM had lost one of their most committed leaders of the romantic revolutionary generation as veteran communist MM Lawrence passed away on September 21. Even this death too was dragged into a mired field of controversy as his children quarreled over the right to his body. Though Lawrence had wished to donate his body to a medical college, his daughter wanted him to have a proper religious funeral.
Final note
The politics enters a crucial phase as CPM nears the final phase of their party conferences. With the aura of Pinarayi Vijayan fading out and no other big names coming up to fill the space, the party is going through one of the most difficult phases in recent history. A CM with diminished charisma and a government without an image, CPM searches for a solution to bail themselves out of a historic crisis.
Meanwhile, Congress too is not bereft of problems, as Ramesh Chennithala has started getting his prominence back in the party, with two strong community leaders, NSS’ G Sukumaran Nair and SNDP’s Vellappally Natesan, extending their support to him. An unfazed VD Satheesan says he has a mission entrusted to him by the High Command. With their eyes fixed on a possible UDF victory, these leaders look to cement their places in the party and UDF, which would make the year 2025 a bit tumultuous for Congress.
BJP too has their own share of problems regarding leadership issues, as two strong factions led by K Surendran and PK Krishnadas have been trying to establish their grip over the party with the support of like-minded party supporters.
Ever optimistic, youth brigade leads charge dreaming big
Though the year 2024 has not been so rosy for the peace-loving, happy-go-lucky Keralites, as optimistic as ever, the confident youth of Kerala has risen, showing their talent and enterprising spirit in many areas. Youngsters have started establishing their names in the Malayalam film industry, as the industry has seen many films enter the 100 crore club like never before. Youngster Sanju V Samson inspired young cricketers with his three hundreds in T20 cricket. There are many others too in the field of art and literature. The confident, optimistic youth is ready to take over Kerala from 2024, as a magnificent new year is only a few hours away.
Published: 23 Dec 2024, 12:05 pm IST
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Related Topics
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Disclaimer: Kindly avoid objectionable, derogatory, unlawful and lewd comments, while responding to reports. Such comments are punishable under cyber laws. Please keep away from personal attacks. The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of readers and not that of Mathrubhumi.