M Swaraj interview: ‘Nilambur bye-poll has potential to influence Kerala politics’
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When the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) picked M Swaraj, a popular leader and a member of the party’s state secretariat as their candidate in Nilambur, it was clear that it wanted to convey the message of a political fight. The bye-poll was necessitated after PV Anvar, an independent candidate backed by them resigned in January this year after a showdown with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, against whom he levelled serious allegations.
Nilambur Assembly constituency established in 1965 stood with the Left when elections were held for the first time in 1967. It had to wait till 1982 to wrest the seat again from the Indian National Congress. It went back to the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in 1987 and became a fortress of Aryadan Muhammed till 2016, when Anvar won with support from the LDF.
In Nilambur, Swaraj is taking on Aryadan Shoukath, son of late Aryadan Muhammed. Swaraj, who began his career in the Students Federation of India (SFI), the students’ wing of the CPI(M), has tasted both electoral victory and defeat, winning against the UDF’s K Babu in 2016 and losing to him in 2021.
Swaraj, while campaigning in Nilambur, spoke to TNM's Haritha Manav on he relevance of this bye-election and what it means for the LDF as it gears up to face a crucial electoral battle in 2026.
Excerpts from the interview:
Does the Nilambur bye-election have any relevance? The winning candidate will have a short tenure of 10 months.
It is true that the tenure is short and that the state elections will be held within eight or ten months. So, many have pointed out that there is no time to execute any major project. However, this factor won’t diminish the significance of this election. We will get the opportunity to initiate new projects. Laying the groundwork for any project which can be completed in the future is success too. The relevance of this election lies in its potential to influence Kerala politics. Many changes occurred in Kerala under the Left government over the past nine years. People are experiencing the benefits of the changes. People wish to continue this. For it to happen the LDF needs to gain power.
The LDF previously supported independent candidates in Nilambur instead of putting up their own candidates under the party symbol. However, in this election, the LDF has fielded its own candidate. Is there a particular reason for this?
In Nilambur, we have contested under the party symbol even when independent candidates were fielded. In the last three elections, we contested under an independent symbol. We have previously won contests both under the party symbol and by backing independents The candidacy will be decided based on the circumstances that arise each time. There is no specific reason for this.
ASHA workers are conducting a door-to-door campaign against LDF in Nilambur. Do you think it will have an impact?
Since our country is a democratic country, anyone has the right to conduct a campaign. ASHA workers joined us during the campaign. My understanding is that someone else is conducting a campaign here in the name of ASHA workers. But, the ASHA workers will never accept a campaign against this government that raised their honorarium from Rs 1000 to Rs 7000. Our society will also never accept this. We don’t consider their campaign here seriously but ASHA workers deserve more consideration. Their honorarium should be increased and the LDF will raise it. We don’t need anyone’s advice for it. The government has previously done it, and we will continue to do it.
Do you believe the allegations raised by PV Anvar can influence this election, especially since he is also contesting as an independent candidate?
We are not taking it seriously and do not think it will affect us.
Tribal land issues and the human-animal conflict are the two key issues in Nilambur. How is LDF planning to address them?
In the recent history of Kerala, it is the LDF government that provided patta to the Adivasis and the landless. It is one of our declared policies and something we are actively implementing. Yes, many eligible people are waiting for patta. There might be some shortcomings in implementing it at the official-level, which can be resolved. We are with the marginalised and the Scheduled Tribes, it is their party. If anyone uses these issues during the election due to their vested interests, we are not compelled to intervene. Election is not our criteria to intervene in these issues.
The Wildlife Protection Act does not value the lives, property and livelihoods of the highland farming community. Those who govern this country have the responsibility to reform the law. The LDF is of the view that laws should be reformed. While giving importance to the environment, we must also consider human beings. The Union government is yet to approve the project that the state government submitted to protect people from wildlife attacks.
There was a controversy when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Hindu Mahasabha declared their support for the LDF. Do you have any comments on that?
PDP had declared their secular stand many years ago. They supported UDF in many elections, however they are backing LDF in recent years. There is no need for a controversy in this, since they have declared their secular stand. I have no idea about that ‘sabha.’ I had declared my stand when I said communalists won’t be considered as humans.