The focus of the recently held state committee meeting of the Kerala CPM in Kollam was not on ideology but electoral politics. Polls are due in the CPM’s sole bastion, Kerala, next year. The aim of the Pinarayi Vijayan government is to achieve a hat trick of victories unheard of in the political landscape of Kerala, whose voters generally throw out incumbent governments every five years.

The Left Front government winning back-to-back elections in 2016 and 2021 itself was regarded as a feat. The state committee meeting was an exercise in eulogising chief minister Vijayan, effectively staking his claim for a third term in office. His undisputed sway over the CPM makes it difficult for dissenting voices to be heard.........

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