Kerala’s ruling Left parties on Monday acknowledged the need for a possible course correction after suffering a setback in the recently concluded civic polls, where the Congress-led alliance registered a decisive victory and the BJP made notable inroads.
The CPI(M) and CPI, the two key constituents of the Left Democratic Front (LDF), held top-level review meetings here to assess flaws in their election strategy and the policies of the incumbent government.
The results have come as a shock to the ruling front months ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, where the LDF is seeking an unprecedented third consecutive term after winning power in 2016 and 2021.
LDF convener and CPI(M) leader T P Ramakrishnan said the reasons behind the public response to the Left in the polls would be examined.
"If there have been mistakes on our part, they will be corrected. Public opinion will be sought," he said.
Ramakrishnan also acknowledged the BJP’s electoral gains in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, where the saffron party dislodged the Left from power.
"We accept this fact and will take corrective measures," he said.
CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said the defeat must be taken seriously by party committees.
"The first phase of this process is the meetings being held on Monday. We will genuinely examine and identify flaws, if any, and move forward after correcting mistakes," he told reporters.
Asserting that the Left front would make a comeback, Viswam said "Kerala's future will be the LDF." Noting that there was limited time left before the Assembly elections, he said necessary corrections would be identified and implemented swiftly.
"The strength of the LDF lies in taking corrective measures. If mistakes have occurred, we will not hesitate to accept them or rectify them. This is a communist value that the CPI, CPI(M) and all LDF parties uphold," he said.
The CPI has also appealed to party workers and the public to write to the leadership, highlighting issues and suggesting corrective steps.
Party MP P Santhosh Kumar said a campaign was carried out against the LDF over the alleged Sabarimala gold loss incident.
"Certain developments facilitated such a campaign. From an electoral perspective, it is a fact that this helped the (Congress-led) UDF by creating an ideological crisis," he said.
He said that although the Sabarimala issue (entry of women in to Lord Ayyappa temple) did not escalate as it did during 2018–19, the recent gold loss incident had some impact against the LDF during the elections.
"Even though we won the ward where Sabarimala is located, campaigns and songs linked to the incident raised questions in the public mind and likely affected the election outcome," Kumar added.
