PALAKKAD: Palakkad, the first municipality in Kerala where the BJP came to power, has long been regarded as the party's stronghold in the state. Often referred to as "Kerala's Gujarat" by BJP leaders and workers, Palakkad witnessed an unexpected political twist as UDF candidate Rahul Mamkoottathil secured a stunning victory, breaking the BJP's dominance.

The counting process in the 52 wards of the municipality began with postal, service and home votes. BJP initially maintained its lead, securing an advantage even in the first two rounds of EVM counting. While a significant lead of around 4,000 votes was anticipated, the party managed only 1,418 votes by the end of the second round. As the counting progressed into the third and fourth rounds, Rahul briefly overtook BJP's Krishnakumar. Although Krishnakumar regained a slim lead of under 1,000 votes, the momentum soon shifted dramatically.

In the sixth and seventh rounds, Rahul surged ahead decisively. By the time votes from the Pirayiri panchayat were tallied, his lead soared past 5,000, far surpassing expectations. The Congress camp, which had anticipated overcoming the BJP’s advantage in Pirayiri, was taken aback when Rahul secured a massive lead of 4,590 votes within the municipality itself.

As counting continued in Pirayiri, Mathur and Kannadi panchayats, Rahul's majority grew to record-breaking levels. At one point, his lead exceeded 20,000 votes, ultimately settling at 18,840 when the final votes from Kannadi were counted. This marked a historic win, surpassing the previous record set in 2016 when Shafi Parampil defeated Shobha Surendran by 17,483 votes.

The BJP, stunned by this defeat, is now grappling with questions over the outcome. Despite plans to address vote leakage, the party remains uncertain about what went wrong in 'saffron fort' and other key areas. The initial assessment attributes the loss to a lack of development in the municipality, compounded by organizational failures and internal conflicts. With local self-government body elections just a year away, the BJP faces mounting pressure to strengthen its grassroots operations to retain its foothold in Palakkad.