Kerala polls: In Beypore’s bastion of grit, Riyas to move ECI against Anvar’s ‘Pinarayism’ charge
Kozhikode: CPI(M) candidate State Tourism Minister and son-in-law of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, P.A. Mohamed Riyas, is to approach the Election Commission with a complaint against UDF nominee P.V. Anvar in Beypore, alleging character assassination in an intensifying electoral contest in the historic port constituency.
The complaint alleges that Anvar has been targeting Riyas and members of Vijayan’s family through repeated references to “nepotism” and “Pinarayism”, amounting to personal attacks in violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
Anvar has openly framed his campaign as a fight against “Pinarayism” and “nepotism”, sharpening the rhetoric in what was long seen as a safe Left stronghold.
Set along Kerala’s storied maritime belt, Beypore carries a legacy of cohesion shaped by trade, craftsmanship and labour.
From its centuries-old shipbuilding yards to the famed kalasis, the tightly coordinated, physically resilient labour groups who hauled massive uru vessels.
Beypore has historically embodied collective strength and discipline, traits that have often mirrored its stable Left-leaning political character.
That equilibrium is now under strain. Riyas’s political rise from his electoral debut in Beypore following his marriage into the Chief Minister’s family, to his swift induction into the cabinet handling key portfolios like Public Works and Tourism, and later into the CPI(M) state secretariat has been closely watched within political circles.
However, the re-emergence of Anvar, a two-time former Left-backed Independent MLA who later fell out with CM Vijayan and resigned from the Assembly, has unsettled the terrain.
After a brief independent phase and an unsuccessful bypoll bid, Anvar has re-entered the Congress-led UDF fold, positioning himself as a direct challenger to the Chief Minister’s political line.
As sharp exchanges give way to formal complaints, Beypore, once defined by its disciplined rhythms and political predictability, is witnessing new currents.
Whether its tradition of cohesion, much like that of its kalasis, holds firm or yields to disruption will be closely watched in the days ahead.
Kerala goes to the polls on April 9 to elect 140 new legislators. The result will be announced on May 4.