Latest news with #MohanGeorge
New Indian Express
24-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
BJP's Christian outreach in Nilambur backfires, Ezhava support dips
KOCHI: The BJP's experiment to tap Christian votes in Nilambur seems to have backfired as figures indicate it may have lost support of the Ezhava community. The leadership, initially hesitant to enter the fray, decided to field a candidate following criticism from within the party. The party roped in Mohan George, who is closely associated with the Church, after NDA partner Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) refused to contest. If the BJP claims that a section of Christians voted for Mohan, it means it lost its Ezhava and Nair votes. The statement by SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan, that Hindus in Nilambur will vote for CPM, may have seemingly influenced the Ezhava community. Alleging that both LDF and UDF are trying to garner votes by appeasing religious fundamentalists, BJP had launched a campaign based on development issues. Despite the setback, it claims it could retain its vote share amidst high-octane campaign by opponents. Backfired Christian community has 14% vote share in Nilambur, while Nair and Ezhava communities have 10% share each. BJP planned to unite them by exposing the Muslim appeasement by the LDF and UDF. However, it could add only 53 votes to its 2021 tally.
New Indian Express
10-06-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Christians desire a change, says Nilambur bypoll NDA candidate Mohan George
MALAPPURAM: Having entered the fray late in the Nilambur by-election, NDA candidate Mohan George is on a mission to widen the front's vote base. TNIE catches up with him for a quick chat. Excerpts Trolls say that your speciality is that you became a candidate first and then took party membership... I am a BJP member. The BJP is a big party. They discuss a lot before choosing their candidate. I was asked about it a week ago. I wasn't that interested. Later, they contacted me several times and many leaders came to me. They probably saw some potential in me. Demographically, a Christian vote base is crucial in this constituency... That may also be a factor. Didn't I say the BJP would have considered all factors when it made me its candidate? How much of a divide can you make among the Christian voters? Christians are the ones who want a change. There has been a huge difference in the attitude of Christians. They don't see the BJP in the same way they used to. Now, they are ready to accept Narendra Modi. They are interested in Narendra Modi's development policies. Wherever I went, many people told me they had already been converted into the BJP but were afraid to admit it publicly. At the same time, there have been incidents where Christians are being attacked, including in north India. Aren't the Christian people you approach here talking about it? That is a misconception. Four states in the northeast are Christian majority states. They say that there are minor problems there. In Kerala, Christians are less than 18-20%. So, it isn't a relevant issue here. It is just a small propaganda against the BJP. How about Manipur riots? In Manipur, it's just an ethnic riot. Is there any chance of winning in Nilambur? Last time, BJP got only 8,500 votes... Yes. Times change, don't they? In the past, the BJP got just two seats in India. But today, it is the party that rules India. It is changing. And let me tell you one more thing. In 2004, P C Thomas contested and won as an NDA candidate in Muvattupuzha. People want a change and it's there in their minds.
Time of India
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Nilambur all set for a four-cornered fight
Kozhikode: The electoral contest in Nilambur took shape on Monday as LDF candidate M Swaraj, TMC convener and former MLA PV Anvar and NDA candidate Mohan George filed their nomination papers. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Nilambur will see a four-cornered battle as the deadline for filing papers has ended. Swaraj filed his nomination papers at Nilambur taluk office after leading a procession with CPM politburo member A Vijayaraghavan and leaders PK Biju, PK Sainaba and others. He said support for the continuation of the LDF govt went beyond party lines. "It's not just LDF workers but people from across the political spectrum are with us. The support comes from their appreciation of the govt's welfare and development work," he said. When asked if Anvar's candidature would affect LDF's chances, he said no candidate would be able to stop LDF's victory. Meanwhile, Anvar, whose resignation led to the bypoll, filed his nomination papers at the taluk office after holding a roadshow from Chandakunnu. He said he was contesting under the banner of Janakeeya Prathipaksha Prathiroda Munnani (JPPM), an alliance supported by All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) and various groups representing farmers, labourers and traders. Aam Aadmi Party state unit also extended support and said they would back Anvar after getting approval from the national committee. Anvar said he would file a second set of nomination papers as an independent due to possible technical issues with using the TMC symbol as the party is not registered in Kerala. His affidavit showed assets worth Rs 52 crore, liabilities of Rs 20 crore and cash in hand of Rs 25,000. NDA candidate Mohan George filed his nomination papers after a roadshow with BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, BDJS leader Thushar Vellappally and BJP leader PK Krishnadas. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Chandrasekhar said that although the election was unnecessary, NDA was contesting to oppose the anti-development and opportunistic politics of LDF and UDF and to present a new development agenda for Kerala. He claimed George was not chosen just because of his Christian background. "Our party does not follow vote bank politics. He was picked for his ability to serve the people. He is an educated advocate with a clear vision for Nilambur's development and is committed to it," added Chandrasekhar. UDF candidate Aryadan Shoukath and SDPI candidate Sadik Naduthodi had submitted their nomination papers earlier.
The Hindu
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
BDJS pledges support to Mohan George in Nilambur
A State council meeting of the Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) here on Sunday declared its support to Mohan George, the candidate fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Nilambur byelection. Under the leadership of BDJS State president Tushar Vellappally, the party will organise family gatherings and public conventions as part of its campaign strategy in Nilambur. A resolution passed at the meeting also called for the full involvement of all State council members in the election campaign. Paddy farmers' issues The council also resolved to address the growing concerns of paddy farmers by organising a protest on June 7. The primary demand will be to raise the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy to ₹3,500 a quintal. Addressing the meeting, Mr. Vellappally criticised the State Agriculture department for its failure to extend timely and sufficient support to farmers and announced that the BDJS would soon launch a strong protest on the issue. He welcomed the Union government's record hike in the MSP and the rollout of a loan scheme under the Kisan Credit Card programme, offering credit to farmers at an interest rate of just 4%. Party State vice-president K. Padmakumar presided. Legal cell As part of its organisational expansion, the BDJS has formed a legal cell aimed at supporting the welfare of lawyers and coordinating related activities. Sinil Mundappally was elected chairman of the cell, while P.S. Jyothis was appointed its convener.
The Hindu
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
BJP fields Kerala Congress leader as party's candidate in Nilambur
Ending weeks of uncertainty, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national leadership in New Delhi on Sunday fielded advocate Mohan George as the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) candidate for the Nilambur Assembly byelection. Mr. George, who entered politics as a leader of the Kerala Students Congress (KSC), was a close associate of the late founder of the Kerala Congress (B) [KC(B)], R. Balakrishna Pillai, for long. He later switched to several Kerala Congress parties and joined the Kerala Congress, a United Democratic Front (UDF) ally. Voters' orientation The BJP, which initially termed the bypoll at the fag end of the second Pinarayi Vijayan government as inconsequential, had realised that it could ill-afford to remain on the sidelines in the pivotal poll, widely reckoned an approximate point of reference to gauge the orientation of Kerala voters in the run-up to the 2026 Assembly polls. Nevertheless, questions about Mr. George's current political leanings prompted the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) campaigns in Nilambur to accuse each other of 'gifting' the BJP a candidate from the Christian settler farmer community, a significant electoral bloc in the constituency. (The BJP had garnered 17,000 votes in the Nilambur Assembly segment in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.) Kerala Congress leader Mons Joseph, MLA, denied the LDF's accusation that Mr. George was a party member. He said Mr. George had switched allegiance to the Kerala Congress (M), an LDF ally. The LDF countered it by publishing photographs of Mr. George attending the Kerala Congress district convention in Malappuram last month. Communist Party of India (Marxist) State committee member and LDF's candidate for Nilambur bypoll M. Swaraj said the BJP found the UDF a favourite hunting ground to poach for ideologically ambiguous leaders, and Mr. George was the latest. BJP membership Mr. George is a Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church member, an Oriental Protestant Christian denomination. He said he would soon accept the BJP's primary membership and file his nomination papers on Monday. Mr. George said BJP leader Noble Mather had invited him to join the party. He said the Bharath Dharma Jana Sena, a BJP ally widely perceived as the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam's political arm with sizable pockets of influence in the backwards class Ezhava community, had declined the Nilambur seat and suggested his name instead. (Girish Mekkatu, a BDJS leader, garnered 12,000 votes in the 2016 Assembly elections in Nilambur. In 2021, the BJP's vote share in the constituency had dwindled to 8,500 when the party pitched its candidate T.K. Ashok Kumar.)
