As the poll date nears, parties like the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) are said to be grappling with a unique hurdle at this critical juncture—fiscal crisis.
Congress candidate K Sudhakaran and CPI (M) candidate Panniyan Raveendran. (Supplied)
In the lead-up to the Lok Sabha election, scheduled to take place in Kerala on 26 April, political parties are gearing up for an intense battle for voter support.
However, parties like the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Communist Party of India (CPI) are said to be grappling with a unique hurdle at this critical juncture— financial crisis.
Some party leaders and candidates are openly expressing concerns about the financial constraints hindering their campaign efforts. They had stated that it could significantly impact their campaign strategies and outreach efforts.
With only 25 days left for the polls, this challenge has emerged as a key concern for some parties and candidates, who are struggling to navigate the complex terrain of political campaigning.
It was the INC’s national leadership who first revealed that they are cash-strapped and it might affect their poll preparedness badly.
It also directed the state-level committees to find alternative ways to generate funds for campaigning. Earlier, it alleged that the BJP-led government is using central agencies to freeze its bank accounts just before the Lok Sabha elections.
In Kerala, the state leadership had made it public that they are cash-strapped.
Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan was found saying to the media, “That the party is facing a fiscal crisis is a reality. Both the BJP and the CPI (M) were pumping money for the election campaigning. The people will understand our sorry state of affairs.”
He added, “There is not enough money for even buying lemon juice for our party workers who are on the field for campaigning.”
At the same time, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K Sudhakaran, said that the crisis has started to affect the candidates in the fray and the party will collect money from the people to overcome it. Sudhakaran is the UDF candidate for the Kannur constituency.
According to KPCC working-president MM Hassan’s office, to overcome the crisis a direction has been given to booths to start bucket collection, a fund collection drive in which a volunteer will hold a bucket and collect money from the public.
“It has already been started,” said a representative of the office to South First.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, another KPCC representative said, “The fiscal crisis has put us in a difficult position. We are struggling to allocate adequate funds for campaign materials, rallies, and other essential expenses. Candidates have already raised this issue with Ramesh Chennithala, the campaign committee chairman of the party in the state.”
At the same time, party insiders said that the issue has forced the party to rethink its strategies and focus on cost-effective methods.
“The first and foremost is crowdfunding. We will also focus on digital campaigning by leveraging social media platforms, door-to-door canvassing, partnerships and collaborations, streamlining operational costs, and others,” said a party insider.
From the left camp, two candidates of the Communist Party of India (CPI) revealed that they were facing a shortage of funds.
It was Panniyan Raveendran and VS Sunil Kumar—candidates of Thiruvananthapuram and Thrissur constituencies— who cited the funding issue.
While Panniyan is said to have started a WhatsApp message campaign mentioning details of his bank account among the close circles, Sunil told the media that he is exploring ways to find money for campaigning.
Talking to South First, C Prekash Babu, CPI national executive member said, “As part of election campaigning, we have directed the party workers to donate ₹200 each. This direction was given two months ago. That amount has been collected. At the constituency level, if needed, the concerned could start crowdfunding.”
At the same time, he also added that the CPI has not received any notice from the Income Tax Department.
“We don’t have enough money so that they can serve notice to us. Each year the party gets ₹2 to 3 crore. It’s from this amount that we carry out our activities,” said Prekash.
However, he said that he is unaware of the Panniyan’s move to collect money from the public for election campaigning.
When South First checked with LDF convenor EP Jayarajan on the funding issue raised by some left candidates, he said that the communist party since its inception had collected money from people for its functioning.
“We collect money from the people. Use that to meet our demands and keep a detailed account of the same and present it from the branch level to the central committee,” he said.
When asked why Panniyan had circulated a message with bank account details, the convener said that as per the directions of the Election Commission a candidate will have to open a separate bank account to facilitate monitoring of election expenditure and he had only done that.
“That’s not a big deal,” he added.
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