Pinarayi Vijayan’s real battle: A fight for survival within CPI(M)
Pinarayi Vijayan, Kerala Chief Minister and the Marxist strongman, is waging a lone battle, a battle for survival. Interestingly, his fight is not against the Congress-led UDF or the BJP but against chieftains in his own CPI(M). The elections held to the Local Self Government Institutions (LSGI) held early this month have come as a shock to Vijayan, and many in his party have started challenging his supremacy in the CPI(M).
A cartel that included M A Baby, the CPI(M) national general secretary, Thomas Issac, the former finance minister, and John Brittas, MP were devising a strategy to unseat Vijayan and send him packing to his hometown, Pinarayi in Kannur district. The Christian triad was joined by P Rajeeve, the minister for industries, and M V Govindan, the State secretary of the party. What has to be noted is that the Christian cartel (Baby, Issac, and Brittas), Rajeev,e and Govindan do not have any mass base in Kerala.
These five wisemen are being supported by the CPI, particularly Binoy Viswam, the state secretary of the party. Viswam has only contempt for the CPI(M) in general and Vijayan in particular. He is the guiding force of “Operation Pinarayi”, the project for unseating Vijayan. Viswam, who considers himself the global leader of the Communist movement, is in contact with other discontented leaders and activists in the CPI(M). He has the tacit support of Daniel Raja, the CPI’s all-India secretary, and his spouse Annie Raja, a strong contender for the top job in the party after the death of Raja.
The election to the LSGI saw the CPI(M) eating humble pie and suffering the worst defeat in history. The party lost five of the six municipal corporations and more than half of the municipal councils. The only consolation is that it could keep at bay a total washout in the polls to the 14 District Panchayat, as the party managed to win seven districts. Vijayan has become a sitting duck till the Assembly polls are held. Kerala will elect a new Legislative Assembly in March-april 2026 as the present House will complete its tenure by May 2026.
Political commentators and poll pundits in the state do not feel there would be any major changes in the results of the Assembly elections from those of the LSGI polls. But there are persons like A Jayashankar, the state’s leading political critic, who are of the view that the next three months are sufficient for the CPI(M) to turn the tide. “For that to happen, there is only one option. The party has to get rid of Vijayan, who has become a major liability for the party. The CPI(M) should also weed out ministers like Saji Cherian, Veena George, Sivankutty, Bindu, and Kel,u who have all turned out to be major burdens for the CPI(M),” said Jayashankar.
All is not well in the Congress camp, too. The number of aspirants for the chief ministerial chair has gone up. V D Satheesan, leader of opposition, Ramesh Chennithala, CWC member, K Muraleedharan, who accepted the role of a suicide bomber during the 2024 Lok Sabha election and got defeated at Thrissur, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, former minister for Home, and K C Venugopal are the major contenders. But the success of the Congress in the local body polls has increased the number of chief minister hopefuls by another dozen. This includes Shafi Parambil, MP (who has positioned himself as the Muslim face of the party) and Mathew Kuzhalnadan MLA, the party’s Christian identity.
But the affairs in CPI(M) could make or mar the political dreams of the Congress and its allies. Leaders like Baby, Issac, Brittas, and Rajeeve do not command any support among party cadres. Despite all criticism levelled against him, Vijayan enjoyed a rapport with party cadres, and this alone made him a force to reckon with in he national level. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during one of his visits to the state, had described Vijayan as the most powerful person in the country’s opposition alliance. So one has to wait till the Assembly election results are declared to write off Vijayan, whom Baby and Brittas describe as Karana Bhoothan (a person responsible for every achievement made by the world).
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