Following a surprising electoral upset in Pathanapuram, outgoing Transport Minister K.B. Ganesh Kumar has launched a scathing attack on the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In a detailed Facebook post, the LDF candidate, who lost his long-held seat to Congress’ Jyothikumar Chamakkala, alleged that a clandestine deal between the two opposition parties paved the way for his defeat. Ganesh Kumar pointed to a significant and ‘suspicious’ drop in the BJP’s vote share as primary evidence of cross-voting intended to consolidate the anti-LDF front.
The actor-turned-politician backed his claims with a comparative analysis of previous election cycles. He noted that BJP candidate Bheeman Raghu secured 11,700 votes in 2016, a figure that rose to 12,398 in 2021. Furthermore, in the 2025 local body elections, the BJP-led front reportedly garnered nearly 23,000 votes across the constituency. However, in the current Assembly election, despite the BJP winning three other seats across the State, their tally in Pathanapuram plummeted to just 7,031 votes. Mr. Ganesh argued that the decision to field a candidate from the Twenty20 party under the Jackfruit symbol was a tactical move to mask the diversion of NDA votes to the UDF.
He further alleged that the NDA was virtually invisible during the campaign period. Mr. Ganesh also observed that in three constituencies where the BJP emerged victorious, the LDF finished in a close second while the Congress fell to a distant third. According to him, the Congress failed to even retain its traditional vote bank in those areas, suggesting a strategic withdrawal to ensure LDF defeats.
Published – May 10, 2026 06:19 pm IST
