With the CPI(M) nominating Rajya Sabha MP Elamaram Kareem as the candidate for the Kozhikode Lok Sabha seat, M.K. Raghavan of the Congress, who has held the constituency for three successive terms, may have a bumpy ride at the hustings.
This time, the battle of ballots is going to test their popularity and the effectiveness of their political manoeuvring. Both had a tag as outsiders once, but they have made Kozhikode their home after foraying into politics or trade union activities, as in the case of Mr. Kareem.
When Mr. Raghavan first contested from Kozhikode in 2009, he was a “parachute candidate” who had no hold on the ground and had to introduce himself to the voters literally. Disgruntlement also brewed in the Congress against his candidature. He barely scraped past his opponent, Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas, to Parliament.
Fifteen years and two more stints later, he will have to face, perhaps, the strongest adversary this time. For Mr. Raghavan, Mr. Riyas was a novice in the 2009 polls. Five years later, his opponent was A. Vijayaraghavan, now CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, who also was an outsider but then had experience as a Parliamentarian in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. In 2019, the CPI(M) nominated popular legislator of Kozhikode A. Pradeepkumar to wrest the seat. However, Mr. Raghavan continued his winning streak.
Now, the CPI(M) leadership believes that Mr. Kareem knows the electoral politics inside out in Kozhikode district unlike his unsuccessful comrades. He is more of a local man than Raghavan was. As a party worker, he has climbed the ladders up from being a member of the Mavoor local committee (1977-1986) to district secretariat (1998) before rising in State politics. As a three-time MLA, first representing Kozhikode-2 (1996) and then Beypore (2006 and 2011) Assembly segments and as a State Minister for Industries and Commerce (2006-2011), he is a much familiar face among the electorate.
Mr. Kareem has a good rapport with trade union leaders across the political spectrum as well as business houses in Kozhikode. This apart, he also maintains a harmonious relationship with the two rival Sunni factions led by Syed Jifri Muthukoya Thangal and Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliar, and the Mujahid factions. Many believe that Mr. Kareem is a no-nonsense Parliamentarian, leading delegations to violence-hit regions in Tripura, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, and Manipur to take stock of the situations in those States.
Both Mr. Raghavan and Mr. Kareem kick-started their campaigns in the constituency unofficially much before their parties declared their candidacy. They are appearing in several public programmes, sometimes the same ones, in an attempt to re-familiarise themselves with the voters.
