As Kerala gears up for the 2026 Assembly polls on April 9, the BJP has ramped up its campaign with the release of its second candidate roster, comprising 39 contenders. Announced Thursday after a pivotal Central Election Committee session in New Delhi, the decision was led by Nitin Navin with top brass like PM Narendra Modi, Rajnath Singh, and Amit Shah in attendance.
This move signals BJP’s determination to break through in the southern state, where it has been steadily building momentum. The list spans key battlegrounds, starting strong in the north with Ashwini M.L. for Kasaragod, A.V. Sunil Kumar for Kaliyasseri, and N. Haridas for Thalipparamba.
Dharmadam goes to K. Ranjit, Thalassery to O. Nidheesh, Kuthuparamba to Advocate Shijilal, and Mattanur to Biju Elakkuhi. In Wayanad and Malappuram, Prashant Malaviyal, P. Subrahmanian, Advocate N. Sreeparakash, Padmashri M., K.P. Baburaj, and Lijoy Paul are fielded to challenge LDF and UDF dominance.
Venturing into Muslim-majority seats, Ashwathi Gupta Kumar contests Malappuram, Jayakrishnan V.N. Vengara, M. Preman Master Vellikunnu, and Riju C. Raghav Tirurangadi. Deepa Pujakkal, K. Narayanan Master, V. Unnikrishnan Master, Ravi Theleth, and Advocate P. Manoj cover Tanur, Tirur, Thavanur, Trippala, and Pattambi.
For SC seats, Renu Suresh in Kongad, Suresh Babu in Tarur, Pranesh Rajendran in Chittur, and K.V. Prasanna Kumar in Alathur represent targeted outreach. Central Kerala sees Advocate B. Gopalkrishnan in Guruvayur, T.S. Ullas Babu in Vadakkancheeri, Bijoy Thomas in Ollur, C.C. Mukundan in Nattika (SC), and A. Nagesh in Pudukad.
Ernakulam’s action includes M.A. Brahmraj (Aluva), Vatsala Prasanna Kumar (Paravur), and P.R. Shivshankar (Ernakulam). B. Radhakrishnan Menon takes Changanassery, M.J. Job Alappuzha, while Kummannam Rajasekharan, Dr. Robin Radhakrishnan, and Dr. N. Pratap Kumar gear up for Aranmula, Kundara, and Kollam.
Analysts view this as BJP’s most comprehensive Kerala strategy yet, leveraging national leadership’s involvement to energize local cadres and voters disillusioned with the ruling fronts.