Left Front and allies sweep Kerala civic polls

The ruling United Democratic Front suffered a setback in the elections to the local bodies in Kerala, with the Left Democratic Front and its allies sweeping the polls, including the dream achievement of wresting all five corporations in the state.

The key feature of the poll was the impressive performance of DIC(K) led by former Congressman K. Karunakaran who threw his weight behind the LDF, and the Bharatiya Janata Party emerging as the biggest party in one municipality.

The LDF swept the five corporations in the state, namely Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Kochi, Thrissur and Kozhikode leaving the UDF without power in a single corporation in the state. Kottayam district seemed to be the only area where the UDF seemed to at least put up a face-saving performance.

In Pala, the Kerala Congress (M) scored a victory despite P.C. Thomas of the now defunct Indian Federal Democratic Party joining the Kerala Congress (J), which is an LDF partner.

In the Thiruvananthapuram corporation the UDF suffered particular ignominy with the DIC(K) winning more seats than the Congress. DIC(K) managed to win a surprising eight out of nine seats it contested in the Thiruvananthapuram city corporation.

The picture was quite similar across the state, with the LDF establishing a clear upper hand over the UDF in the municipalities, district, blocks and the village councils.

LDF was ahead in 33 of the 52 municipalities, as against 18 by the UDF and one where the BJP emerged the biggest party.

It was for the first time in the state's political history that the BJP was able to top a municipality when it won 17 seats in the Palakkad municipality as against 16 seats each by the UDF and the LDF.

OUTCOME
Impressive gains for DIC(K) and BJP

If there are any clear winners in the civic elections held in Kerala they are the Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran) and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

While DIC (K) leader K. Karunakaran proved yet again that he was still a political force in Kerala, the BJP scored impressive gains in several pockets in the state including Palakkad where it emerged the largest party in the municipality edging out both the UDF and LDF.