Nilambur bypoll result a rude jolt to LDF; morale booster for UDF

The victory of UDF’s Congress candidate Aryadan Shoukath in the Nilambur assembly constituency bypoll on Monday came as a rude jolt to the ruling LDF and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

The outcome of the Nilambur bypoll which has been considered as the Semi-final before the big match, has given the Congress –led United Democratic Front(UDF) a morale booster.The Victory in Nilambur gives the UDF the energy to come together and fight as a team in the 2026 assembly polls.

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UDF’s Congress candidate Aryadan Shoukath delivered a resounding victory in the Nilambur Assembly byelection, outpacing Left Democratic Front (LDF)’s M. Swaraj by a significant margin of 11,077 votes.

The LDF and the CPI-M have strived hard to retain the sitting seat.The LDF leaders, especially Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, have reached Nilambur and engaged in intensive campaigning to retain the sitting seat. The Chief Minister has given special attention in the Campaign in Nilambur as the poll outcome was seen as a key indicator of the political mood ahead of the 2026 state assembly election.

The Chief Minister and the party did not just aim to relieve the fatigue of the resignation of PV Anwar, who had been the mouthpiece of the CPI-M, both as a fellow traveler and a cyber warrior. They also calculated that if Nilambur is retained, it will send a message that continued rule will be guaranteed in 2026. But all those hopes were dashed through Aryadan Shaukam. Now the UDF is raising the banner of anti-government sentiment in the sky of Kerala through Nilambur.

During the ‘Pinarayi Vijayan period ‘ since 2016, Kerala has seen 13 by-elections. The first Pinarayi government faced 8 by-elections and the second Pinarayi government faced 5 by-elections. Out of 8, the Pinarayi government’s record during its first term was four wins and four losses.

First, the UDF won in Thrikkakara through Uma Thomas. Later, Congress candidate Chandy Oommen also dealt a heavy blow to the LDF in Puthuppally. The LDF retained the Chelakkara seat through UR Pradeep. Congress’s Rahul Mamkootathil won the Palakkad seat.

Shoukath maintained lead throughout the counting except in the ninth round where LDF’s Swaraj got a slight lead of 200 votes.The bypoll was necessitated after the resignation of PV Anvar ,who won the seat as an LDF -backed independent candidate in the 2021 assembly election.

A significant part of the result is that P V Anwar, who left the LDF after raising serious allegations against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, garnered around 20,000 as an independent candidate. BJP candidate Mohan George polled 8,562 votes.

This is the second consecutive defeat for Swaraj who narrowly lost to K Babu of the UDF in the 2021 Assembly election from Tripunithura. Swaraj had won the seat in 2016 beating Babu by a margin of 4,467 votes.