#095 - Battleground Kerala: Will Pinarayi Vijayan return? | Bharatvaarta | Politics

Kerala is scheduled to go to the polls in May. Politically, it has  largely been bi-polar, with power alternating between the CPI(M)-led  Left Democratic Front and the Congress led United Democratic Front.  While the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government has praised for having  delivered welfare schemes efficiently during the Kerala Floods of 2018,  it’s recent mishandling of the COVID pandemic and also the spate of  scams has cast a shadow on its performance. In the UDF, the Congress’  decline politically has mirrored the rise of the Muslim League who are  now a more assertive ally, causing tensions between various allied  demographics.

The Kerala Congress (Mani) split, with K M Mani's son Jose K Mani,  allying with the LDF has made matters grave. Meanwhile, the BJP has seen  a groundswell of support in recent times led by Prime Minister Modi’s  own popularity; he has inaugurated multiple infrastructure projects in  the State, recently, including the 2,000-MW Pugalur-Thrissur high  voltage direct current (HVDC) power transmission corridor.

On this episode, we are joined by political experts and commentators, Ananth Krishna Subhalakshmy and Rohit Jayaraman for a deep dive analysis  of what factors could influence the results of this upcoming election.  This podcast is available on YouTube, Apple, Google, Spotify, Breaker,  Stitcher, and other popular platforms.If you like this episode, then  please like, subscribe and share! For more information, do check out  www.bharatvaarta.in.