Political upset for the history books; UDF springs big surprise in LDF heartland of Taliparamba

KANNUR: Even cadres of the Left Democratic Front are left speechless over the embarrassing drubbing they received in the party strongholds in Kannur. In many such bastions across the district, the party was pushed to second place, leaving even political analysts clueless. Party leaders, including sitting ministers, lost. Taliparamba, the party fortress and one of the most-watched constituencies during this election season, pulled off a surprise nobody expected.

T K Govindan, a former member of the district secretariat, who left the party in protest against CPM’s decision to field P K Shyamala (the wife of party state secretary M V Govindan), emerged as the winner from the constituency. This is considered a political upset for the history books in the state.

There were big differences over P K Shyamala, who is also the leader of the Democratic Women's Association, contesting from the Taliparamba constituency. P K Shyamala, becoming the successor of former Taliparamba MLA M V Govindan, created opposition from a section of the party. This led to T K Govindan contesting as a UDF independent in the constituency. T K Govindan left the party after making serious allegations against M V Govindan and Shyamala.