THE BJP’S hopes of making a dent in the bypoll for Palakkad, a seat where it finished runner-up in both the 2016 and 2021 Assembly elections, have taken a beating. On Monday, its popular young leader and state committee member G Sandeep Varier declared that he would not campaign for C Krishnakumar, the BJP candidate for the Palakkad bypoll, to be held on November 20 now.

In 2021, the BJP had fielded ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan from the seat, and he got 35.34% of the votes, underlining the improvement in the party’s vote share election after election in Palakkad. Even in the 2016 Assembly polls, when the BJP did not have such a high-profile candidate, it got 29.08% of the votes in the seat.

In this year’s Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won its first-ever constituency in Kerala, Thrissur, boosting its expectations regarding Palakkad.

Varier contested the 2021 Assembly elections from Shornur in Palakkad district, and got 24.34 % of the votes. His rebellion against the BJP, announced via a Facebook post, comes close on the heels of a 2021 election fund scandal returning to haunt the party.

Last week, a former BJP office secretary in Thrissur, Thiroor Satheesh, alleged that some hawala money that had been “looted” during the elections was meant for the party. He also pointed fingers at BJP Kerala president K Surendran, while claiming he was acting at the behest of party state vice-president Shobha Surendran.

Shobha has denied this, while Surendran has said he has no reason to suspect her.

The BJP Kerala president dismissed the impact of Varier’s move Monday, indicating that he was on his way out. “We are watching the situation… Let us see to what extent he goes. We have no worries about the poll outcome,” Surendran said.

On CPI(M) leaders’ offer to Varier to join their party, Surendran said: “Who will join a sinking ship?”

The absence of Varier from the BJP’s Palakkad campaign has been noticeable, with party sources saying he believes senior leaders have sidelined him despite his contributions, including heading the party’s campaign in the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat from where senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi contested.

A few days back, as per a source, Varier was denied a seat at a party election convention in Palakkad.

Announcing that he would stay away from the BJP campaign, Varier posted on Facebook: “There are many Sandeep Variers who face insult and neglect from the party. There is no system in the party to address the issues. I have lost hope in the party. I will continue as a party member, but will not campaign for the candidate in Palakkad.”

He added: “Self-respect is very important for a person. I have been insulted in the party. I am not a person who gets upset over the denial of a seat at a convention. There have been a chain of events.”

Later, while speaking to the media, Varier indicated a rift within the party over candidate selection. “I had shared my opinion with the party leadership that either K Surendran or (Shobha) should contest from Palakkad. Such a move would have neutralised local-level opposition, if any,” he said.

The Left is backing former Congress leader Dr P Sarin, who is contesting as an Independent, in Palakkad. Inviting Varier to join the party, CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan said: “We welcome anyone who has a clear stand on Left politics.”

The Congress has fielded Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkoottathil. Sarin’s departure had caused a few local Congress leaders, making intra-party tensions an issue for the party as well, like the BJP.

The Palakkad bypoll was necessitated by the decision of the Congress to field its sitting MLA Shafi Parambil for the Lok Sabha elections. Parambil contested and won from Vadakara.