CHENNAI: At India’s southern tip, Kanyakumari stands apart in elections. Unlike other parts of Tamil Nadu where the Dravidian majors fight it out, two national parties are at the forefront of the poll battle. While Congress pitches the secular plank, BJP strives for Hindu unity, and TVK plays the alternative card. BJP is contesting four of the six assembly seats here, while its principal ally AIADMK has a candidate in one constituency. In the sixth, BJP’s ally Tamil Maanila Congress is contesting on the lotus symbol. In the other camp, DMK has allotted three seats to Congress, choosing to contest two segments and giving the sixth to CPM. The relatively stronger presence of Congress and BJP has demographic and historical reasons. Christians constitute about 47% of the district’s population. As Christians have been traditionally backing Congress, Hindus gravitated towards BJP. The roots of right-wing politics here can be traced to 1972 — eight years before the founding of BJP — when RSS’s Eknath Ranade inaugurated the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari, amid opposition from Christians, who believed the rock was their holy site. In the following decade, several Hindu nadars converted to Christianity. Politically they supported Congress, which positioned itself as the protector of minorities. The Mandaikadu riots between Hindus and Christians in 1982 cemented the BJP–Congress rivalry. BJP got its first MLA in Tamil Nadu, C Velayuthan, from Kanyakumari in 1996. In 1999, BJP’s Pon Radhakrishnan won the Lok Sabha seat and went on to become a Union minister. Congress had its share of historical reasons to gain prominence here. Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress, led by Marshal Nesamony, which was fighting for the integration of Kanyakumari (then with Travancore) with TN, merged his party with Congress in the 1950s, triggering the national party’s growth. In the ensuing polls, Congress and BJP are banking on their traditional strengths; both also hope to benefit from the vote split TVK is expected to effect. PM Narendra Modi held a roadshow in the district on April 15 and Congress’ Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to campaign here on April 20. On the ground, BJP and RSS workers are reaching out to Hindu families, targeting Cong-DMK over “failed promises” and anti-incumbency. Congress, for three seats, as in 2021, relies on its vote bank and the secular slogan. Publicly, it targets BJP and AIADMK policies while privately lobbying among Christian priests, asking them not to back TVK candidates. TVK’s entry has made the contest interesting as it eyes support across sections.
