JD(S) Continuation in Kerala's LDF Becomes Untenable

Thiruvananthapuram: JD(S) workers in Karnataka may be elated over the induction of their leader H D Kumaraswamy into the Narendra Modi government but their counterparts in Kerala have landed in a tight spot.

For the past ten months, since the JD(S) decided to join the NDA, the Kerala unit of the party has landed in a peculiar situation. The JD(S) in Kerala is a constituent of the CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and has a minister and an MLA. K Krishnankutty is the power minister in the Pinarayi Vijayan Cabinet and Mathew T Thomas is MLA from Thiruvalla constituency.

LDF is part of the India alliance at the Centre hence the JD(S) continuation in the front becomes untenable if it fails to take a stand.

The CPM state leadership has now given an ultimatum to the Kerala unit of JD(S) to decide at the earliest about severing its ties with the parent party. The Kerala unit of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is miffed over the LDF leadership’s refusal to allot one of the Rajya Sabha seats that is falling vacant. It was RJD’s state leadership that publicly questioned JD(S) continuing both in the LDF and NDA at the same time.

The public statements made by RJD have embarrassed the CPM leadership. Since September last year when the JD(S) joined the NDA, the state leadership of the party has been assuring the LDF that it would sever the ties with the parent party. However, those statements remained on paper.

With CPM toughening its stand, the state leadership of the JD(S) has now convened a meeting on June 18 to discuss the matter. The party is exploring various possibilities including the formation of a new political party and merger with Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party.