A political legacy, but no win yet: Padmaja Venugopal''s new fight in Thrissur
Thrissur(Kerala) (PTI): Sons of prominent political leaders in Kerala have successfully established themselves in state politics as MPs, MLAs and ministers, even during the peak of their fathers' influence.
Such emergence, however, has been far less common among daughters -- and Padmaja Venugopal is one such exception, although she has not won an election so far.
Padmaja, the daughter of late Congress stalwart and former Chief Minister K Karunakaran, entered electoral politics at a time when "Leader", as he was respectfully known among Congress leaders and workers, was still shaping the course of politics in the state.
Despite contesting from the erstwhile Congress stronghold of Mukundapuram in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, she lost, largely due to the growing factionalism that had gripped the party at the time.
The same factionalism was widely believed to have affected her prospects again when she contested Assembly elections in 2016 and 2021 as a Congress candidate.
This time, however, she is hoping for better fortunes from this central Kerala Assembly constituency-- not as a Congress candidate, but a BJP leader.
Though she quit the Congress in 2024 alleging complete negligence, Padmaja is banking on her family's long political legacy in the state's cultural capital, Thrissur, as well as the BJP's steadily increasing vote share in the region.
The party also secured a significant breakthrough in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, winning the Thrissur seat with actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi as its candidate.
However, she faces a tough contest in the constituency from the Left candidate Alankode Leelakrishnan and the Congress nominee Rajan Pallan.
While Leelakrishnan, a noted poet and writer, is seeking to continue his party's electoral success in the seat, Pallan is aiming to build on the Congress party's performance in the recent local body elections in the Thrissur Corporation.
Raghunath C Menon, the BJP's Thrissur mandalam president and a corporation councillor, said that Padmaja would "definitely win" this time, as she had lost by only around 900 votes in 2021.
Menon, a close aide of Padmaja, said there are around 1.6 lakh registered voters in the constituency, of whom about 1.2 lakh are expected to cast their votes.
"We need just 45 per cent of the votes to win here, and we are confident of achieving that. The direct contest is between us and the UDF. The CPI candidate is relatively weak," he told PTI.
Binoy Viswam, the CPI state secretary, said that Alankode Leelakrishnan had been fielded from the seat as Thrissur is the cultural capital of Kerala, and a poet was the most suitable choice.
"We should have cultural figures in the Assembly. We want people with diverse talents -- women, activists, youngsters and others -- to represent all sections of society. People have taken him (Leelakrishnan) very seriously," Viswam said.
He added that the LDF would highlight the overall development and welfare initiatives carried out by its government in the constituency over the past decade.
"The CPI won in 2016 and 2021, and its MLAs have done a great deal for the city, which no one can deny," he told PTI.
When asked whether Padmaja’s candidature as the BJP nominee -- in a seat where the party has steadily increased its vote share -- would affect the CPI's chances, Viswam said that "all true believers are with us".
He also asserted, "Whoever contests from there, we will win."
Pallan, the Congress-led UDF candidate, also expressed confidence of victory from the Hindu-majority constituency, saying that the results of the 2021 Assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls would not influence the outcome of the April 9 polls.
In 2021, CPI's P Balachandran secured 44,263 votes, with a 34.25 per cent vote share, compared to party candidate V S Sunil Kumar's 53,664 votes and a 42.19 per cent vote share in 2016, according to Election Commission data.
In both years, the BJP's vote share increased--from 6,697 votes in 2011 to 24,748 (19.46 per cent) in 2016 and 40,457 (31.30 per cent) in 2021 -- while the Congress vote declined from 59,991 in 2011 to 46,677 in 2016 and 43,317 in 2021.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, of the 1,31,858 votes polled in the Thrissur Assembly segment, Suresh Gopi secured 55,057 votes -- a 41.75 per cent share -- as per ECI data.
Pallan said the recent local body elections, in which the Congress won the Thrissur Corporation, were a better indicator of the likely outcome in the constituency.
"Of the 40 divisions in the corporation, we won 25. In addition, we already have a lead of over 10,000 votes in the seat," Pallan told PTI.
When asked how the UDF plans to counter Padmaja’s political lineage and the BJP’s growing vote share in Thrissur, Pallan said that while he does not underestimate any candidate, the Congress-led front would emerge victorious.
Menon dismissed the relevance of the recent local body election results, saying it was based on familiarity, but Assembly and parliamentary polls are driven by political considerations.
Padmaja herself recently expressed confidence of victory.
"I am confident of winning from Thrissur as I have faith in the people here. The BJP focuses on winning as a party rather than on individual candidates. That is a great relief for me," she said.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
