Kerala, Assam and Puducherry, which go to the polls today, begin this particular season of assembly election that also features Tamil Nadu and West Bengal later this month. Kerala and Assam, separated by geographical distance and culture, have been under the thumb of two dispensations that are ideological and political adversaries — the Left Democratic Front and the Bharatiya Janata Party, respectively. Yet, there are interesting convergences. In Kerala, the Left, with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leading the charge, is hoping to return to power for a third term. Himanta Biswa Sarma would achieve a similar feat if the BJP were to sweep Assam, once again. The Congress — this is another shared spot — is the principal challenger in both states. Moreover, just as the reverberations of a Congress victory in Kerala would strengthen the party’s grip south of the Vindhyas — Telangana and Karnataka are in the Congress’s kitty — a BJP triumph in Assam is likely to further cement the saffron outfit’s hold on the Northeast.
The electoral campaigns and the issues dominating the electoral discourse in these two states, however, point to their respective distinctiveness. In Assam, personal rivalry — animosity — seems to have eclipsed the competing outfits. Mr Sarma and his challenger, Gaurav Gogoi, have indulged in a campaign that was rife with rancour. The other issues that this northeastern state’s electors were presented with, especially by the BJP, are routinely resurrected before every election: religious polarisation, identity markers, and the bogey of infiltration. The Congress sharpened its talons by hurling serious charges of corruption against the chief minister and his family. Kerala’s electoral canvas was, arguably, wider. Given its significant émigré population to the Gulf countries, the West Asia crisis and its ramifications made their presence felt on the southern state’s electoral landscape. Migration and employment were other subjects that received attention. There were also political deliberations on the state’s debt burden and on the templates of welfare that are in place. This is not to say that Kerala is indifferent to the lure of faith. The Sabarimala case continues to shape the outreach of the Left, Right and Centre while the Church retains its own sphere of influence. Which of these issues — individually or together — have struck a chord with the electorates in these two states would be clear on May 4.