Kozhikode: Former MLA P.V. Anvar on Saturday blamed his defeat in the Beypore constituency during the recent Kerala Assembly elections on a leakage of votes in UDF strongholds.

Anvar, who parted ways with the LDF, entered the fray in Beypore as a UDF-backed Independent candidate. He lost the contest to P.A. Mohammed Riyas, former tourism minister.

His remarks follow recent assertions by Congress leaders claiming that the UDF could have secured all 13 Assembly seats in Kozhikode district had a different candidate been fielded in Beypore.

Addressing the controversy in a Facebook post, Anvar questioned whether he was "defeated or made to lose", adding that recent revelations and media coverage had forced him to speak out.

Anvar argued that his campaign succeeded in exposing issues such as "Pinarayism, son-in-law politics and dynastic rule", while simultaneously boosting the UDF's prospects in other Kozhikode constituencies.

He alleged that vote leakage occurred in key UDF pockets, including Feroke, Ramanattukara, and Cheruvannur-Nallalam, though votes from Left strongholds helped cushion the impact of those losses. He also pointed out that dummy candidates collectively polled 1,469 votes.

According to Anvar, the local UDF leadership had tasked him with cutting down the Left candidate's lead in Beypore while assuring him that they would secure the remaining areas.

"I kept my word. We managed to reduce the lead in Beypore to around 5,000," Anvar said, maintaining that the final outcome would have differed had the expected margins materialised in Feroke and Ramanattukara.

Anvar stated that he intends to release a comprehensive, booth-by-booth breakdown of all 215 polling booths to highlight where the votes were lost and the reasons behind the outcome.

IUML response

Meanwhile, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) state general secretary P.M.A. Salam dismissed claims that Anvar's candidature caused the front's defeat in Beypore.

"Was Anvar a candidate in all the constituencies where the LDF won? There may have been defeats due to political reasons. We are not saying that candidates lost because they were bad," Salam told reporters.

While confirming that the UDF would look into the allegations of vote leakage, Salam questioned the emphasis on the sole loss in the district.

"In any case, we are a front and a party that won 12 out of 13 seats. Why waste time talking about this single seat instead of discussing those 12," he stated.

Salam added that those attributing the Beypore defeat specifically to Anvar's candidature should provide an explanation. (PTI)