Breaking his silence after the Left Democratic Front (LDF) suffered a debilitating blow in the Assembly elections, Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] Polit Bureau member Pinarayi Vijayan wrote on social media on Thursday that the “unexpected” verdict marked a new beginning for the Left’s continued political work, not an end.  

The alliance, he said, was committed to restoring the people’s faith in it and marching ahead with renewed vigour. Constant vigil was needed to ensure that the development projects and welfare schemes implemented in the last 10 years, which had brought sweeping changes in society, did not halt and were taken forward.

The Left, he said, would make no bones about an open examination of the election results and would listen seriously to criticisms and concerns raised by the public, Left supporters and members, and act upon them.

Reasons for defeat

He attributed the results to an environment created by forces that opposed the Left, such as the UDF, the BJP and a section of the media, besides “false campaigns unleashed by certain anarchic and apolitical centres” which gave some people some misgivings. Serious efforts would be made to sensitise them to the facts, he said. The Left, he added, would not be set back by lies and PR-driven false campaigns. However, it would democratically examine the lapses in its own policies and interventions and carry out necessary corrections before marching ahead with greater confidence and clarity.

As the Opposition, he said, the front would ensure that the Left’s vision for a Nava Keralam — conceived through a knowledge economy, employment for youth, social justice, public health and education — was taken forward. The new government would be pressured into implementing the policies initiated by the LDF government for extreme poverty eradication and women empowerment.

The Left would be a responsible Opposition, supporting the new government’s actions to better the standard of living of the people while opposing its anti-people policies.

On BJP’s victory

“Protecting secularism and plurality is the basic trait of the Left, and certain aspects of the verdict, therefore, caused anxiety to secularists,” he said. That the BJP has won three seats should be taken seriously. The Left would continue to take an uncompromising stance against communalism of all types and combat the politics of polarisation.

Mr. Vijayan also attacked a section of the media for creating alleged false and hyperbolic narratives. While they did not augur well for democracy, the Left would learn lessons from this and move forward, he said. He thanked the voters who reposed their faith in the Left and congratulated the UDF on its win.