Malappuram (Keralam) [India], March 31 : Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi has claimed that there is a strong wave of change in Kerala, asserting that the United Democratic Front (UDF) is witnessing a favourable atmosphere ahead of upcoming political developments in the state.
Speaking to ANI, Pratapgarhi said, "The people in Keralam want change, and there is a great atmosphere for the UDF. There is a lot of anger among the people against the ten years of the Pinarayi Vijayan government."
He further alleged issues such as the Sabarimala gold theft controversy and claimed an "internal nexus" between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Vijayan.
Targeting the BJP, the Congress leader added, "A showroom of Rahul Gandhi's 'Mohabbat Ki Dukan' is about to open up here. BJP will not be able to open its account in Keralam."
Earlier on Monday, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi termed the 2026 Keralam Assembly elections as a contest between Congress-led UDF and the "combination of the LDF and BJP."
Addressing an election rally in Pathanamthitta, Rahul Gandhi alleged that the LDF government in Keralam is controlled by the BJP in the Centre. Backing his claim, he said that the Centre has filed no case against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as he does not fight against the BJP.
He also highlighted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not mention the Sabrimala gold theft case in his address in Palakkad on Sunday.
Rahul Gandhi alleged a BJP-CPIM nexus in Kerala. "BJP knows that if they are in power in Delhi, then any LDF government in Keralam is fully under their control. The first proof of this is that the people who fight the BJP get attacked and threatened by them. I myself have been attacked, and have 36 cases against me. There is no attack on the CM of Kerala by the BJP."
"The second reason is that the PM came here yesterday. In every speech, he talks about temples and religion, but somehow, he forgot about what happened in Sabrimala. He forgot that the left front leaders took the gold of the Ayyappa temple and replaced it with brass."
"We are fighting here in the elections against the LDF, which is completely supported by the BJP. On one side is the UDF, and on the other side is the combination of the LDF and the BJP. There is a hidden hand of the BJP in the Kerala elections, and it does not want the UDF here because they know the only force that challenges them in the country is the Congress party," he added.
The polling for Keralam Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 9, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4.
Keralam has traditionally followed an alternating pattern of governance, switching between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) every five years since 1982. This trend was broken in 2021 when the LDF, led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, was re-elected for a second consecutive term.
While the LDF and the UDF are frontrunners in the polls, the BJP will attempt to make a mark after its historic win in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation elections.
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