AP Abdullakutty is BJP's candidate for Malappuram LS bye-polls

Bharatiya Janata Party's National Vice President AP Abdullakutty will be the party's candidate from Malappuram for the Lok Sabha bye-election.  The bye-election will be held on April 6 and was necessitated by the fact that Indian Union of Muslim League MP PK Kunhalikutti resigned from the post to contest in the state Assembly Elections.

By fielding Abdullakutty, the BJP wants to give competition to the IUML in their stronghold.

Abdullakutty started his political career with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) party. He won twice from the Kannur Lok Sabha constituency defeating current Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee President Mullally Ramachandran, in 1999 and 2004. He was a 'wonder kid' in politics - he defeated Mullally, who had been an MP for 25 years, from the constituency.

Later in 2009 he was ousted by CPI(M) following a difference in opinion and he also praised some BJP policies Gujarat. THE same year, he joined Congress and won the 2009 Kannur Assembly bye-election and 2011 Assembly election on a Congress ticket. But later in 2016, he lost the elections from Thalassery constituency.

Following this, Abdullakutty also had issues with the Congress leadership and as per reports he had been neglected by the party.

In 2019, after he was denied a seat for the Lok Sabha elections, he joined the BJP leaving Congress behind. Later, he was appointed as Vice President of the Kerala unit and then elevated as national vice president.

He is one among the few politicians who has been a part of all the three major political fronts in Kerala. The former Student Federation of India leader, he is an LLB graduate and lawyer by profession.

Congress leaders have accused him of being an opportunist  who changes parties frequently for power.

However, the BJP leadership expect him to be a game changer for them in Malappuram, as it has been an IUML seat for several years now. In 2014, E Ahmed of IUML won from the constituency and in 2019 PK Kunhalikutty won there. Kunhalikutty who was then MLA had resigned from the Assembly to contest for Lok Sabha.