By Nanditha Subhadra
Kerala’s political landscape seems ripe for a saffron surge. Disillusioned voters, especially women and youth, are growing weary of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and United Democratic Front (UDF), whose poll-driven antics have lost public favor. Yet, despite this favorable climate, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Kerala is stumbling, crippled by internal discord and a leadership style that reeks of hubris rather than humility.
Nationally, the BJP thrives under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s charisma, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s “Mission 2026” projects bold gains for the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, targeting a 25% seat share in upcoming local polls. But the state unit is faltering, plagued by factionalism and a disconnect with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the party’s ideological anchor. Leaders like P.R. Shivashankaran, steeped in RSS values of discipline and respect, are exceptions in a state unit dominated by defectors and sycophants whose arrogance alienates Kerala’s nuanced electorate. While neutral voters, particularly Hindus tired of LDF and UDF minority-focused politics, view the BJP as a potential alternative, the state leadership’s haughty demeanor risks squandering this goodwill.
Hubris at the Helm
The BJP’s Kerala leadership often clashes with the state’s culture of intellectual debate and communal harmony. State President Rajeev Chandrasekhar, a technocrat-turned-politician who took charge in March 2025 after K. Surendran’s exit, has been criticized for favoring optics over genuine outreach. His September 2025 dismissal of voter fraud allegations in Thrissur as “silly politics” struck many as elitist, deepening perceptions of arrogance. Insiders report rifts, with Surendran’s absence from key July meetings signaling internal fractures.
This tone permeates the ranks. General Secretary Sobha Surendran’s fiery rhetoric, while popular among loyalists—her June 2024 clapback to poster vandalism in Alappuzha declared her “unerasable” from voters’ minds—often veers into rudeness, alienating moderates. Vice-President B. Gopalakrishnan’s public spats with activists have drawn similar flak. Most glaring is Thrissur MP Suresh Gopi, whose 2024 Lok Sabha win marked a historic BJP breakthrough. His maverick charm, once an asset, now fuels controversy—epitomized by a September 2025 viral video where he brusquely told a senior citizen seeking housing aid to “leave,” sparking outrage and cries of “arrogance without limits.”
The party’s hostility toward Kerala’s vibrant media further compounds the issue. On September 20, 2025, the suspected suicide of BJP councillor K. Anil Kumar in Thiruvananthapuram ignited a firestorm. His alleged suicide note accused party leaders of abandoning him amid a financial crisis tied to a failing cooperative society. As journalists covered the tragedy, BJP workers attacked, smashing cameras, shoving female reporters, and hurling abuses—actions that horrified Kerala’s press community. The next day, Chandrasekhar’s sharp rebuke of Kairali News reporter Sulekha Sasikumar, snapping “Not you…” and questioning her “shame” for probing Kumar’s death, drew condemnation from media bodies like the Kerala Union of Working Journalists, who slammed it as “feudal arrogance.” This belligerence toward the press, a vital force in Kerala, is electoral poison as local polls loom.
Leadership Void and Scandals
A leadership vacuum worsens the crisis. K. Surendran, once the face of the state unit, has faded since stepping aside in March 2025, with his absence from key events fueling speculation of his diminished clout. Former Union Minister V. Muraleedharan, a Malabar stalwart, faces similar irrelevance, with Kozhikode posters last November branding him “out of touch.” Scandals further erode trust—state vice-president C. Krishnakumar’s August 2025 sexual harassment allegations, though dismissed by him as “politically motivated,” cast a shadow over election prep. Kumar’s suicide note, alleging betrayal by party brass, only deepens perceptions of internal rot.
The Defector Dilemma
The BJP’s reliance on high-profile defectors and non-RSS leaders creates cultural misalignment. Chandrasekhar and Gopi, both outsiders to the RSS ethos, struggle to bridge the gap with Kerala’s grassroots. Other defectors like Tom Vadakkan (ex-Congress), Alphonse Kannanthanam (ex-Left), and P.C. Thomas (ex-Kerala Congress) have failed to deliver promised clout. P.C. George and his son Shon, who joined in January 2024 to bolster Christian outreach, have also faded from prominence, their initial hype yielding little by mid-2025.
A Precarious Path Forward
The BJP’s 2024 Thrissur win was a milestone, not a mandate. To challenge the LDF-UDF stranglehold in 2026, the party must curb its leaders’ egos and embrace Kerala’s ethos of humility and nuance. Efforts like the “Meet the Leader” help desk show promise, but without a leadership overhaul rooted in RSS discipline and local sensitivity, the saffron wave will remain a mere ripple, trapped by its own hubris.
