Why PV Anvar looms over Congress, LDF in Nilambur bypoll
The forthcoming by-election to the Nilambur assembly constituency in Kerala's Malappuram is generating huge political interest with the entry into the fray of its two-term independent MLA P.V. Anvar.Anvar, who had a falling out with the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF), after he targeted chief minister Pinrayi Vijayan, is now state convenor of the Trinamool Congress (TMC). He resigned as MLA in January after facing the heat for alleging that additional DGP (director general of police) M.R. Ajithkumar was involved in gold smuggling. Ajithkumar is widely considered as an officer enjoying the trust of the Vijayan government.advertisementWith Anvar contesting the June 19 bypoll, both the LDF and the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) are gearing up for the challenge.Nilambur used to be a Congress citadel, with Aryadan Muhammed holding the seat uninterrupted for almost 30 years since 1987. Anvar, backed by the LDF, wrested the constituency in 2016 by 11,500 votes and again in 2021.
The Congress has fielded Aryadan Muhammed's son Aryadan Shoukath, who had lost the election in 2016. The LDF nominee is the CPI(M)'s M. Swaraj, a youth leader and native of Nilambur. The BJP has announced advocate Mohan George, a former Kerala Congress (Joseph) leader, as its candidate in continuation of the party's efforts to woo the Christian community.Anvar's nomination paper as a TMC nominee was rejected by the returning officer as the party had apparently delayed authorisation. Anvar then is technically contesting as an Independent, which could mean political freedom to decide on his loyalties should he win.advertisementHow do the Congress-led UDF and LDF assess Anvar's impact on the bypoll? 'Anvar cannot change the destiny of the Congress in Nilambur. We will win by a massive mandate and also inflict a shock on the Pinarayi Vijayan government. The people of Kerala are waiting to give their verdict,' said leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan.CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan Master considers Anvar politically irrelevant. 'Anvar is of concern for the Congress. We are least bothered about him. We are confident of winning the bypoll,' he told INDIA TODAY.Nevertheless, Anvar remains a force to reckon with in the electoral politics of Malappuram. The 58-year-old entrepreneur-turned-politician has a Congress family background. He started his electoral career with the 2011 assembly polls, in which he contested from the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) stronghold of Eranad as an Independent, losing narrowly by 11,246 votes but securing a 41.5 per cent vote share.Anvar contested the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 from Wayanad but failed—a vote share of just 4 per cent. In the 2016 assembly polls, the CPI(M) backed him from Nilambur and again in 2021. Under the LDF banner, he also contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from Ponnani as an Independent, losing by over 193,000 votes.advertisementAnvar was favoured by the CPI(M) as he lent the party political mileage in Malappuram against the IUML. But relations strained after he was denied a ministerial post in the second innings of the Vijayan government. Whether or not he wins, Anvar can arguably determine the outcome of the election since he has a captive vote base of around 25,000 in Nilambur. Good reason for the LDF and the UDF to keep fingers crossed till counting day.Subscribe to India Today Magazine
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