Riyas, Balagopal, Cherian? CPM Faces Key Who-After-Pinarayi Vijayan Call

For the first time in decades, the CPM in Kerala is facing a question many party workers once thought would never arise: Is this how the decline began in West Bengal and Tripura?

The concern inside the party is not only about losing an election. It's the intensity of electoral fall. In Bengal and Tripura, the Left slowly lost its hold over unions, cooperatives, local committees, and grassroots networks long before it lost power. In Kerala, much of that structure still remains strong. The CPM leadership now has to decide how to protect it after one of its biggest defeats in recent history.

The Left Democratic Front has been reduced to 35 seats in the Kerala Assembly. Thirteen ministers lost the election. With the CPM already out of power in the rest of India, Kerala was its last major stronghold.

The choice of the next Leader of the Opposition has therefore become an important political decision for the party.

The case for Mohammed Riyas

The name drawing the most attention is P. A. Mohammed Riyas.

At 49, the former Public Works and Tourism Minister is seen as a younger face in a party still led mostly by senior leaders. He retained Beypore with a margin of 7,487 votes despite the anti-incumbency wave that defeated many ministers.

Supporters of Riyas believe the CPM needs younger leadership to reconnect with urban voters and younger people. They also point to his visibility as minister and his communication style.

But there is also resistance within sections of the party. Riyas is the son-in-law of outgoing Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Critics say giving him the post could strengthen claims of nepotism and continue what opponents call "Pinarayism", where too much power became concentrated around one leader and his close circle.

The case for Balagopal

That is why K. N. Balagopal is also being seen as a strong contender.

The former Finance Minister survived in Kottarakkara despite a tough contest. A CPM central committee member with long organisational experience, Balagopal is viewed by many in the party as a stable and experienced leader. In fact, apart from Vijayan himself, Balagopal is the only central committee member who won.

Some leaders feel his soft style could help the party send a message of correction after the defeat.

The case for Saji Cherian

Saji Cherian is another name under discussion.

The former minister retained Chengannur with a margin of more than 10,000 votes. Party workers see him as an aggressive campaigner and a strong organiser who can energise the cadre and lead a sharper opposition inside the Assembly.

What the party is watching closely

The CPM leadership will also study the success of rebel and dissident Left figures in traditional party strongholds. For several rounds even Pinarayi Vijayan trailed, sending jitters down the spine of the Marxist.

In Payyannur, rebel leader V. Kunhikrishnan defeated sitting CPM MLA T.I. Madhusoodanan after campaigning against centralisation and the weakening of grassroots workers inside the party and allegation against party for siphoning martyrs fund.

In Taliparamba, Kannur, expelled CPM leader T.K. Govindan defeated CPM candidate P.K. Shyamala, the wife of CPM state secretary M.V. Govindan.

Along with the continued influence of G. Sudhakaran in Alappuzha politics, these results have triggered discussion inside the CPM. Many now feel the concerns raised by grassroots workers and sidelined local leaders may reflect a wider feeling among ordinary Left supporters as well.

The CPM leadership is now trying to understand what message voters sent through this election and what changes the party needs to make before the next political battle.

The CPM leadership now faces a decision that goes beyond choosing an opposition leader. It has to decide what kind of party it wants to be after this defeat, and whether it is willing to listen to the signals coming from its own grassroots workers who trounced them and voted them out of power.