Kerala CM confident of big victory with more seats in 2026 Assembly polls in state
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday expressed confidence of a big LDF win in the upcoming Assembly polls in the state, claiming that the Left Front will get more seats this time round.
Vijayan's confident assertion came during a press conference here in response to reporters' queries regarding the LDF claim that it will win 110 seats this time. It had won 99 seats in the 2021 Assembly elections.
"We have reason to be confident. We expect the people to again vote the LDF to power, with more seats than last time," he contended.
The CM said the circumstances behind the Left Front's loss in the recent civic polls were different and would not affect the outcome of the Assembly elections.
He said that while voting in the Assembly polls, people would not just take into account their experiences during the last one or five years of Left rule, but the last 10 years of LDF administration and will compare it with the situation that was prevalent before that.
"That comparison will significantly influence their decision as the state has achieved a lot in the last 10 years of Left rule," Vijayan claimed.
Giving details of the achievements under the Left rule, he said that it was during the LDF administration that Kerala got the distinction of being the state with the least corruption when the same was rampant across the country.
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This was achieved due to the policies adopted by the LDF government, he contended.
"Similar astonishing changes have been witnessed in various sectors, including education and health, in the state. So, the people will take a decision based on their collective experience during the last 10 years and not as per the propaganda of the opposition," the CM asserted.
When asked whether the LDF's claims of winning 110 seats were based on any survey like that carried out for the Congress-led UDF by poll strategist Sunil Kanugolu, Vijayan said, "We don't have any Kanugolu. The people are our Kanugolu."
The people will not be swayed by such surveys and will take a decision based on their experiences, he reiterated.
Earlier in the day, state Tourism Minister P A Mohammed Riyas claimed that the LDF would win 110 of the 140 assembly seats according to the deliberations during a special cabinet meeting held a day ago.
The interventions required to be made by each minister in the respective districts assigned to them were examined in the meeting, and a clear picture was arrived at on how to proceed further, Riyas told reporters in Kozhikode.
"As per the deliberations, we are confident of winning all of the 13 Assembly seats in Kozhikode district," he added. The Congress-led UDF opposition had recently claimed that it would win 100 of the 140 assembly seats in the upcoming polls.
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Naval information leak case: Fourth accused held
Udupi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Udupi police have arrested another accused in a case involving the alleged transmission of confidential information related to the Indian Navy to Pakistan, taking the total number of arrests to four, officials said on Thursday.
The arrested accused has been identified as Alif Islam (21), a native of West Bengal, who was presently residing at Marayur village in Idukki district of Kerala, they said.
He was apprehended in connection with the alleged leak of a confidential list containing identification numbers of Indian naval vessels, police said.
According to investigators, the accused are suspected to have shared sensitive information through WhatsApp and Facebook with contacts in Pakistan without authorisation.
The case was registered at Malpe police station in 2025 following a complaint regarding the alleged illegal transmission of naval-related data, officials said.
Police said the investigation pertains to the alleged sharing of a classified list of ship numbers linked to the Indian Navy.
In November 2025, two accused -- Rohit and Santri from Uttar Pradesh -- were taken into custody in connection with the same case. Later, Hirendra Kumar from Gujarat was arrested in December 2025.
With the latest arrest, the number of persons held in the case has risen to four.
Police said one more accused is yet to be apprehended. The operator of the Facebook page allegedly used to transmit the information also remains at large.
Investigators suspect that Islam may be a Bangladeshi national, and efforts are on to verify his citizenship and other credentials.
Further investigation is under way, police added.
