Kerala Assembly Election 2021, Thavanur profile: Education minister KT Jaleel won seat in 2016 with support from LDF

Thavanur Assembly Election 2021 | The Thavanur Assembly constituency Malappuram district was formed after the last delimitation exercise in Kerala.

Sitting MLA KT Jaleel contested and won as an LDF-backed Independent candidate in both the Assembly elections held so far in Thavanur. At present, he holds the portfolios of higher education, the welfare of minorities, wakf, and hajj in the Kerala government.

In 2020, Jaleel landed in a controversy after he accepted and distributed food kits and copies of the Quran from the UAE Consulate during Ramzan. While the alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act didn’t go well with the authorities, his name in the gold smuggling accused’s phone call list spelt more trouble for Jaleel.

The Congress and BJP in Kerala held widespread protests demanding Jaleel’s resignation. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan came in Jaleel’s support and said there was “no ground to say he did anything wrong”.

With the 2021 election a few months away, the UDF has its eyes on the Thavanur seat. The LDF, however, is yet to disclose whether Jaleel will seek a third term from Thavanur.

Past election results and winners

In 2016, sitting MLA KT Jaleel retained his seat by polling 68,179 votes, while his Congress rival Ifthiquarudheen Master received 51,115 votes. BJP’s Ravi Thelath stood third, with 15,801 votes.

Total electors, voter turnout, population

Electors: Thavanur has an electorate of 1,92,911, comprising 95,141 males, 97,770 females. The Assembly constituency has 158 polling stations.

Voter turnout: In the 2016 Assembly election, Thavanur had a voter turnout of 76.65 percent. Of the 1.41 lakh who exercised their franchise, 64,372 were male and 77,208 were female.

Population: The Thavanur Assembly constituency comprises Edappal, Thavanur and Vattamkulam panchayats from Ponnani taluk; and Purathur, Mangalam and Thriprangode panchayats from Tirur taluk.

As per Census 2011, of Kerala's 3.34 crore population, 54.73 percent are followers of Hinduism, followed by 26.56 percent followers of Islam and 18.38 percent Christians. Hinduism is the major religion in 13 of the state's 14 districts.
Malappuram is the only district in Kerala where Islam is the major religion with 70.24 percent of the district's total population following the religion.

The state has a tiny population that follows Jainism (0.01 percent), Sikhism (0.01 percent), Buddhism (0.01 percent) and 0.02 percent (other religions). Nearly 0.26 percent in the state didn't state their religion during the 2011 Census.

Election date and timing

The Kerala Assembly/Niyama Sabha polls will be held on 6 April, 2021, along with Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. The day will also see phase three polls in Assam and West Bengal.

The Kerala Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) has a total number of 140 seats, of which, 14 seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and two seats are reserved for the Scheduled Tribes.

The outgoing Assembly has eight female MLAs and rest 132 are male MLAs. The incumbent Kerala Niyamasabha will expire on 1 June, 2021.

Political alliances and Kerala

Elections in Kerala have traditionally been a contest between the UDF and the LDF with power swinging between the two groups.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha election, the Congress-led UDF had won 19 out of the state’s 20 Lok Sabha seats banking on incumbency against the ruling LDF. However, repeating a similar feat in the Assembly polls is going to be an uphill task for the UDF.

The LDF has not only managed to overcome anti-incumbency in the 2020 local body polls but also managed to make inroads into UDF votebanks, particularly in Thrissur, Ernakulam, and Kottayam districts.

The NDA, which is emerging as a third front in Kerala, will be hoping to increase its tally in the Assembly polls. However, given that the BJP-led NDA didn't meet the expectations in the 2020 local body polls despite making gains, its ability to impact either the UDF's or LDF's prospects in the Assembly election remains unclear.

Of the seven Assembly segments that are part of the Kasaragod Parliamentary constituency, five are with the CPM-led LDF (four with CPM, and one with CPI) while IUML, a constituent of the Congress-led UDF, is the second-largest party, winning the remaining two seats (Kasaragod and Manjeshwaram) in the last Assembly polls.

BJP didn't win any of the seven Assembly segments that are part of the Kasaragod Parliamentary constituency in 2016.