Power equation in Pala tilts towards Congress rebels

Published 10 August 2026 · politics

Amidst heightened expectations of a new political alignment taking shape in Pala, the balance of power in the municipality is tilting further towards the Congress

Amidst heightened expectations of a new political alignment taking shape in Pala, the balance of power in the municipality is tilting further towards the Congress rebels, who have reached a consensus to field incumbent vice-chairperson Maya Rahul for the chairperson’s post. Rahul, an independent councillor aligned with the rebel group, is most likely to win with the backing of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the election scheduled for August 19. The election was necessitated by the removal of UDF-backed chairperson Diya Binu Pulikkakandam through a no-confidence motion moved by the LDF on July 2, with the support of four Congress councillors and Ms. Rahul.

Since then, Ms. Rahul has been functioning as acting chairperson of the civic body, while the rebels and the LDF have effectively operated as a 17-member bloc in the 26-member council. The Left Democratic Front, meanwhile, has little interest in claiming the chairperson’s post, having already achieved its immediate political objective of ousting the UDF from power. “Politically, we prefer Maya because she was elected as an independent and technically cannot become a Congress member until the completion of her term. Supporting an independent member will not cause any harm for the LDF. At the same time, we will not nominate any person as that could become a political commitment in the future,” said a Kerala Congress (M) leader.

New power arrangement Backing Ms. Rahul also allows the LDF to shape the new power arrangement without formally taking responsibility for running the municipality. The front has indicated that there has been no discussion so far on sharing the chairperson’s post among the rebel councillors. The UDF had originally formed the council with the support of the three-member Independent Collective led by the Pulikkakandam family and Ms. Rahul. The arrangement, however, unravelled after differences emerged between the Independent Collective and Congress councillors, eventually paving the way for the no-confidence motion and the ouster of Ms. Pulikkakandam.

In the 26-member council, the UDF has 10 members, including six from the Congress, three from the Kerala Congress (Joseph) and one from the Kerala Democratic Party led by Mani C. Kappen. The LDF, on the other hand has 12 members, including 10 from the Kerala Congress (M) and two from the CPI(M). The remaining four councillors are independents.