Kerala Assembly Elections 2026 | Many seniors in BJP-NDA keenly awaiting seats, resentment coming out

As a second list of BJP candidates for Kerala assembly polls are expected anytime, many senior leaders who didn't get a place in the first list are keeping fingers crossed.

Resentment within the BJP as well as its coalition partners have already come out in the open over seats allotments.

Many senior leaders of the party, including state general secretary M T Ramesh, former Goa governor P S Sreedharan Pillai, former Mizoram governor Kummanam Rajasekharan, state secretary J R Padmakumar and state vice president B Gopalakrishnan were learnt to be expecting seats in the first list itself.

Ramesh reportedly expressed displeasure to the party leadership for not being considered for the Thrissur seat which has been given to Padmaja Venugopal - daughter of former Chief Minister and Congress leader K Karunakaran.

BJP already suspended Minority Morcha national vice president Noble Mathew for openly criticizing the candidacy of union minister of state for minority affairs George Kurian, who is a Rajya Sabha MP.

There is also resentment in the BJP over giving the Kodungaloor and Tripunithura seats in Kochi to coalition partner Twenty20 as well as the moves to give the Aranmula seat in Pathanamthitta to another coalition partner Bharath Dharma Jana Sena. The saffron party has considerable influence in these constituencies.

Meanwhile, Kerala Kamaraj Congress leader Vishnupuram Chandrasekharan, who is also the vice chairperson of NDA Kerala, came out in the open against denying the Parassala seat on the suburbs of Thiruvananthapuram, which is considered as its stronghold. He said that the party would be forced to take harsh decisions if the neglect continued.