UDF suffered heavy defeat since it neglected Ezhava community: MM Hassan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: UDF Convener MM Hassan pointed out that the UDF suffered a heavy defeat in the recently concluded Assembly polls since it neglected the Ezhava community in the candidate selection. Speaking at the KPCC Political Affairs Committee meeting, Hassan pointed out that it was a mistake that the Congress leadership did not pay attention to Kerala Kaumudi's reports regarding this since the local body elections in November.

The Congress has a tradition of giving decent representation to the backward classes, including the Ezhavas, in the candidate selection process. In Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, and Alappuzha districts, three and four seats were usually allotted to the Ezhava community.

However, this time the forward class was given seven seats in Thiruvananthapuram district and five seats in Kollam district, while the Ezhavas were given one seat each in the two districts. The Ezhavas were given two seats only in Alappuzha. In Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, and Idukki districts no seats were given. The Vishwakarma community was completely ignored. The Muslim community was also not given due consideration. The Kerala Kaumudi reports have had a huge impact on these communities.

"When the Congress suffered a setback in the last local body elections, I had pointed out the Kerala Kaumudi reports which claimed that the backward communities were being ignored by the Congress. An agreement was reached to rectify the situation in the Assembly polls. However, it did not happen. The Congress would have performed better this time if it had given more consideration to the backward classes along with the youth and newcomers in the candidate selection process," Hassan said.