Anvar confirms support for VS Joy; Aryadan Shoukath also wants to be candidate; Congress in tough position

MALAPPURAM: The announcement of candidates in Thrikkakara and Puthuppally soon after the elections were announced, had added to the glow of Congress's victories. However, the current situation indicates that things will not be easy for Congress in Nilambur, where PV Anvar resigned as MLA. VS Joy and Aryadan Shoukath are on the list of candidates from the Congress. PV Anvar, who had already announced his support for VS Joy, is tightening his stand.

Anvar has informed the Congress leadership that he will support the UDF candidate in Nilambur only if Joy is the candidate. Anvar had made this clear in his response to the media when he resigned as an MLA. With Anvar officially informing the leadership about this, the decision to choose a candidate has become a difficult one for Congress. The fact that Aryadan Shoukath is actively campaigning in the constituency with the aim of candidacy is creating a headache for Congress.

PV Anvar entered the assembly as an independent Left candidate by defeating Aryadan Shoukath in 2016. In 2021, Anvar had also defeated V.V. Prakash, the popular face of the UDF, after a tough contest. Anvar, who won by 11,504 votes in 2016, had a majority of just 2,700 in 2021. Shoukath lost in the constituency where his father, senior leader Aryadan Muhammed, had contested and won for years.

Now that the by-election is coming, Shoukath is in the field, claiming to be the candidate, but the Congress is aware that if Anvar is upset, it will affect the party's chances of victory. Along with this, Anvar has demanded in the discussion with the Congress leadership that the entry of the Trinamool Congress into the front in Kerala should be expedited.

Anvar informed the election in-charge AP Anil Kumar that VS Joy has a better chance of winning in the constituency. Anvar has also informed Anil Kumar that if Trinamool Congress is taken in the front before the elections, the majority will increase. Meanwhile, the Left is calculating that if VS Joy is the candidate, there is a possibility of Shoukath breaking with the Congress leadership and in that case, the Left will have the possibility of fielding him as an independent.

The Congress leadership is making a persuasive move in front of Shoukath that if the seat is given to Joy this time, his party will be given a constituency where it is sure to win in the 2026 general elections. However, this is unlikely to be acceptable to Shoukath.