From Congress stronghold to swing seat: Edappally set for another fierce battle

Over the past 25 years, the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) have shared the spoils in the Edappally division of the Kochi Corporation.

When sitting councillor Deepa Varma of the CPI(M) won the division in 2000, it marked the breach of a long-standing Congress stronghold. Her successor retained the seat in 2005. The UDF reclaimed it in 2010 and held it again in 2015, before Ms. Varma resigned from her teaching job and returned from political hibernation to win it back for the LDF in 2020, when the seat was reserved for women.

Ms. Varma is contesting once more and is even being considered a mayoral candidate should the LDF secure a majority in the Corporation. She has, however, downplayed the speculation, saying that it is for her party to make the appropriate decision at the right time.

“There was a definite advantage in being the sitting councillor and having delivered development after a decade-long stagnation prior to 2020. Restoring a direct road from Ponekkara to the Edappally railway station remained a priority, as it would significantly ease traffic congestion at the Edappally underpass. While waterlogging had been addressed to some extent, a permanent solution was still elusive. There were only two outlets to the Perandoor canal and the Muttar river. Although fully restoring direct access to Edappally Thodu mighthave been difficult, even partial restoration would have gone a long way in resolving waterlogging,” said Ms. Varma, who continued to offer online tuition and had also completed her law degree in the meantime.

UDF candidate Abdul Latheef campaigning in the Edappally division, appealing to voters ahead of the local body elections.
| Photo Credit:
R.K. Nithin

Abdul Latheef, District Congress Committee general secretary and Youth Congress Edappally Mandalam president, is making his electoral debut and remains confident of reclaiming the seat for the UDF. He relies on what he describes as the Congress’ solid vote base in the division. “The 2020 result was more of an aberration against the backdrop of the pandemic, while V4 Kochi also played spoilsport. The UDF has since secured handsome majorities in successive Assembly and Parliament elections in the division. The division continues to suffer from drinking water shortages, waterlogging, and mosquito proliferation. The Edappally Raghavan Pillai park, once a popular spot, remains in ruins. The sitting councillor has done precious little during her term, except for laying tiles on a few roads in the past six months,” he said.

While both the LDF and UDF claim that the BJP is not a decisive factor in the division, the party’s candidate C. Nandakumar describes this as a reflection of panic among both fronts due to the BJP’s growing influence. “People across communities, including Christians, are enthusiastically responding to our campaign, which highlights how Centrally administered programmes like Cochin Smart Mission Limited are playing a crucial role in the city’s development. We are also focusing on creating opportunities for both the young and the elderly. People want us to come to power to bring about change,” he said.

NDA candidate C. Nandakumar during his campaign in the division.
| Photo Credit:
R.K. Nithin

The division has undergone minimal change in delimitation, except for ceding negligible areas to the newly created Changampuzha ward. It has an electorate of over 6,500.