A majority of CPI-M leaders refused to buy Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s argument that the LDF’s debacle in the Lok Sabha polls was a reflection of people’s ire against the BJP government at the Centre, not the anti-incumbency factor against his government.

During a meeting of the party’s state committee on Tuesday, the chief minister and his government are said to have come under sharp criticism.

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Participating in the discussions, many members squarely blamed the chief minister and his government for the humiliating defeat of the LDF in the Lok Sabha polls. A few among them reportedly cited the chief minister’s style of functioning as the main reason for the drubbing of the LDF.

The report presented by the party secretary MV Govindan said the Nava Kerala Sadas didn’t yield the desired result. The delay in the payment of welfare pensions contributed significantly to the defeat

The report said the CPI-M lost votes of the Exhava community, which has been traditionally a backbone of the party in many constituencies. The members said Ezhava votes have gone in favour of the BJP in large numbers in Attingal, Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha and Thrissur. The Nair votes, which were previously gone in favour of the LDF, have also gone to the BJP this time.

The functioning of the SFI, the party’s students’ wing, also came under criticism at the state committee. The death of Sidharthan at the Veterinary university campus at Pookode in Wayanad had a negative impact on the party and the state government, some members said.

They underlined the need for the SFI to bring under the serious scrutiny of the party.

Had the government taken measures to distribute the welfare pension promptly and ensured the availability of essential commodities at the Suplyco outlets, the scenario would have been different, other state committee members said.

Most of the state committee members, who spoke at the committee, demanded immediate corrective measures to regain the confidence of the party workers and sympathisers.

The members also demanded that the government should take steps to bring the common people closer to the party by streamlining the distribution of social welfare pensions.

BJP’s growth is a serious issue for the party. Its vote percentage in Alappuzha, Kannur, Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram cannot be taken lightly, some members said at the committee.

Some other members pointed out that the campaign against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has not given the intended results for the party, but it benefited the UDF. Care should be taken while taking up such matters in future, they said.

CPI-M general secretary Sitaram Yechurty, who addressed the LDF state committee, agreed that there’s a general criticism that anti-incumbency against the state government was a major factor for the LDF’s defeat in the Lok Sabha polls.