Published Jan 24, 2026 | 12:00 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 24, 2026 | 12:00 PM
IUML
Synopsis: After its strong showing in the recent Kerala local body polls, the Indian Union Muslim League was widely expected to be more assertive within the United Democratic Front ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls. Instead of seeking a larger share of seats, however, the party has opted to pursue seat swaps, betting on winnable constituencies and drawing cues from its performance in the local body elections.
The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) recorded its most emphatic performance in a grassroots contest in decades at last year’s local body polls in Kerala, finishing behind only the Congress and the CPI(M) in total seats statewide.
The results dispelled the label of the party being merely a Muslim outfit limited to Malabar and followed a vigorous ground campaign. Since then, speculation has grown that the IUML would act as a more assertive partner within the UDF as Kerala heads into the all-important Assembly polls.
The party received a further boost on Thursday, 22 January, when Suja Chandrabu, a three-term president of the Anchal Panchayat in Kollam, joined the IUML after leaving the CPI(M) following a three-decade association.
Suja Chandrababu
IUML Chief Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal welcomed Chandrabu, accused the Left party of failing to practise the secularism it claims to champion, and said the IUML was the logical choice for her given its ideological consistency.
Yet the IUML appears content to maintain its existing equation within the UDF rather than demand a larger share of seats in the forthcoming Assembly polls.
Sources in the UDF told South First that the Congress and the IUML have instead begun talks on swapping Assembly constituencies to contest seats where each party has a stronger base.
The proposal came up during the first round of seat-sharing talks attended by KPCC President Sunny Joseph, Opposition Leader VD Satheesan, senior Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and Adoor Prakash, and IUML National General Secretary PK Kunhalikutty and Kerala General Secretary PMA Salam.
Under the proposed seat swap plan, the Congress is likely to take over constituencies where the IUML has suffered defeats in the past. These include Guruvayur and Thrissur; Punalur, Kollam; Thiruvambady, Kozhikode; Kongad, Palakkad; and Kalamassery, Ernakulam.
In return, the IUML is likely to get seats where the Congress and other UDF allies lost, including Thavanur, Malappuram; Kochi, Ernakulam; Pattambi, Palakkad; and Eravipuram, Kollam, which the Revolutionary Socialist Party lost to the CPI(M).
The League is also said to have expressed interest in contesting a few seats in the Thiruvananthapuram and Wayanad districts, drawing confidence from its performance in the local body polls.
The party is also said to be taking lessons from its setbacks in the 2021 Assembly polls.
“[The IUML] contested 27 seats and won 15. That election saw many changes. Ten new candidates were fielded, a woman was given a ticket after 25 years, and some three-time MLAs were denied seats. This time, instead of more experiments, the League will focus on seats where it has a better chance of winning,” Mohammed Nizar, an IUML activist from Malappuram, told South First.
Among the key constituencies the IUML is targeting is Thavanur in Malappuram. Independent Dr KT Jaleel has held the seat without a break since 2011, with the backing of the ruling LDF.
KT Jaleel.
But the IUML’s clean sweep of gram panchayats within the constituency has convinced party leaders that the seat is now winnable.
At the same time, local LDF leaders told South First that Dr Jaleel may not seek a fourth term. Jaleel, however, told the media that any decision on his candidature would be taken by the CPI(M). He also dismissed reports that he may instead contest from Perinthalmanna against IUML’s Najeeb Kanthapuram as speculation.
Similarly, the Kochi Assembly seat is a key focus for the IUML. The seat is currently held by CPI(M)’s KJ Maxi, who has represented the constituency since 2016 and defeated Congress candidate Tony Chammany by 14,079 votes in 2021.
K.J Maxi MLA
But the constituency includes large parts of Fort Kochi, Mattancherry and adjoining panchayats, where minority votes, especially those of Latin Christian denominations, play a decisive role.
The IUML’s confidence here stems from recent civic developments. The Kochi Mayor and Deputy Mayor posts are now with the Congress, and the IUML is set to get a one-year term as Deputy Mayor once Congress’s Deepak Joy completes a curtailed two-year term. TK Asharaf has been named as the League’s Deputy Mayor nominee.
Local IUML leaders said that if the Latin Church extends support, the party will have a realistic chance of winning the seat.
The IUML is said to have earlier demanded Pattambi in exchange for the SC-reserved Kongad seat but later withdrew the demand after pressure from a Congress leader seeking the constituency for a relative. Local IUML leaders in Pattambi are not entirely happy with the climbdown.
A senior IUML leader from the constituency told South First that local leaders, led by State Vice-President CAMA Kareem, recently met PK Kunhalikutty and Sayyid Sadiqali Shihab Thangal, arguing that recent results showed the League’s electoral strength in Pattambi.
C.A.M.A. Kareem
Despite this push, the party has privately acknowledged that it lacks consistent majorities in several pockets of the constituency. The presence of the SDPI, along with its occasional support for the CPI(M), has added uncertainty.
Pattambi has been held by the CPI’s Muhammed Muhsin since 2016. He secured 49.58 percent of the vote in 2021, while Congress candidate Riyas Mukkoli polled 37.74 percent.
Likewise, in Kongad, CPI(M)’s K Santhakumari won with 49.01 percent of the vote, while the IUML’s UC Raman polled just 29.36 percent.
Under a revised understanding now under discussion, the IUML would continue to contest from Kongad and field a Dalit candidate, while the Congress would field a Muslim candidate in Pattambi.
The IUML has also expressed interest in Eravipuram, long considered a stronghold of the UDF ally, the Revolutionary Socialist Party. The RSP dominated the seat between 1967 and 2011, barring a brief IUML win in 1991 by PKK Bava. Since 2016, however, it has been a stronghold of the CPI’s M Noushad.
Karthik Premachandran and NK Premachandran with Rahul Gandhi. (Facebook/KarthikPremachandran).
The IUML, which expanded its presence in southern districts and recorded a higher vote share than the CPI in the local body polls, believes it can take on the Left here and has proposed Noushad Yunus, son of veteran leader Yunus Kunju, as its candidate.
The RSP, meanwhile, is pushing to retain the seat, proposing Karthik Premachandran, son of NK Premachandran. This move has reportedly triggered internal dissent within the party, further complicating negotiations.
Guruvayur, home to the Sree Krishna Temple, is one of Kerala’s more politically intriguing constituencies.
With a sizeable Muslim population across coastal Guruvayur and Chavakkad, the seat has traditionally alternated between the IUML and the CPI(M). It is also the only constituency allotted to the IUML by the UDF in Thrissur district.
Until 2006, Guruvayur was largely an IUML stronghold, barring two interruptions by independents, and sent leaders such as BV Seethi Thangal, PKK Bava and PM Abubacker to the Assembly. Since then, however, the CPI(M) has held the seat without a break. Such has been its dominance that the BJP did not even field a candidate here in the 2021 Assembly election.
NK Akbar MLA
For the coming polls, however, a local BJP leader told South First that the party is considering contesting. “If the BJP contests, there will be no easy victory for anyone,” he said.
Likewise, Punalur in Kollam has remained a tough seat for the IUML despite the party making inroads into other traditional Left bastions in recent years. The constituency is currently held by the CPI’s PS Supal, who defeated IUML candidate Abdurahiman Randathani in 2021 by a margin of over 37,000 votes.
While the recent arrival of Suja Chandra Babu has strengthened the League’s organisation in the district, Punalur remains a CPI stronghold. Sources said the IUML may allow the Congress to contest Punalur and instead seek seats such as Eravipuram, Chadayamangalam or Ambalapuzha, where it has a stronger base.
Kalamassery and Thiruvambady present a similar calculation. In 2021, CPI(M)’s P Rajeev won Kalamassery by defeating IUML candidate VE Abdul Gafoor by a margin of more than 15,000 votes.
In Thiruvambady, CPI(M) candidate Linto Joseph won with 47.46 percent of the vote, defeating IUML’s CP Cheriya Muhammed, who polled 44.21 percent. Support from the Thamarassery Diocese is crucial in the constituency.
If Rajeev opts to contest again from Kalamassery, the League is unlikely to risk another defeat and may prefer to hand the seat over to the Congress.
The IUML’s demand for safe, winnable constituencies rather than a higher number of seats is a calculated political move that points to its ambition of becoming a pan-Kerala force, D Dhanuraj, chairman of the Centre for Public Policy Research, told South First.
Law and Industries Minister P Rajeev (Facebook)
“This is about consolidation, not expansion for the sake of numbers,” he said.
The IUML had its strongest presence in the Kerala Cabinet during the second Oommen Chandy government from 2011 to 2016, when it held five ministerial berths.
Dhanuraj said traditional UDF allies such as Kerala Congress (M) and Kerala Congress (J), which are influential in Central Travancore, are now hamstrung by internal conflicts. The Joseph faction, in particular, with limited organisational capacity, is struggling to contest a larger number of seats.
“This creates a political opening for the IUML to expand into new regions,” Dhanuraj said.
If the League manages to win between 18 and 20 seats in the 140 seat Assembly, it could play a decisive role in government formation, including influencing the choice of chief minister and key ministerial portfolios, and could even seek the deputy chief minister’s post.
Kunhalikutty, however, said the party is not seeking the deputy chief minister’s position.
“If the UDF comes to power, the IUML will not put any pressure on the alliance. Even when Oommen Chandy offered us the deputy CM post earlier, we declined it,” he told South First.
IUML leader PK Kunhalikutty. (pkkunhalikutty/Facebook)
He said the party’s focus is on winning more seats and setting aside a fixed number of constituencies for women candidates, not bargaining for positions.
Even so, as political discourse heading into the polls is increasingly centred on communal and religious issues, the CPI(M) and the Congress are competing with each other for groups such as the NSS and the SNDP, while the BJP is expected to consolidate its base.
“In this scenario, the IUML has an opportunity to consolidate minority votes, especially as the CPI(M) appears to be losing ground among minorities,” he said.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
