The Kerala political landscape is set for a realignment with the Nationalist Congress Party divided on whether to stay with the ruling Left Democratic Front or switch sides to the Opposition coalition led by the Congress.
The simmering differences within the NCP headed by Sharad Pawar came to the fore when it became clear that it would not get the contentious Pala Assembly seat in the upcoming Kerala elections. With the Kerala Congress (Mani) led by Jose K. Mani having switched to the LDF in October 2020, and Pala being the traditional hub of the party originally formed by Jose’s father K.M. Mani, it was expected to cause a rift within the ruling front since the seat is now held by the NCP. A section led by NCP state president T.P. Peethambaran Master and Mani C. Kappan has made it clear that they would not settle for anything less than the Pala seat that the party snatched from the UDF in the 2019 bypoll following K.M. Mani’s death.