CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ■ ■ kottayam l sunday l december 14, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 26 l city EDITION 4 KOZ 34 26 13 3 KNR 15 36 4 1 Total 2 1 1 0 0 10 0 0 0 26 Campaign over Sabarimala gold theft influenced the masses 64 6 TIE 8 Anti incumbency against the 10-year-Left rule Total Total 63 Total OTH 33 14 7 941 NDA 11 7 LDF TCR 87 4 UDF 6 340 TIE 46 What went wrong for LDF GRAMA PANCHAYATS 505 152 OTH 20 TIE KOC LDF 1 79 OTH 12 NDA 27 LDF 16 28 NDA OTH TIE UDF 54 2 KLM BLOCK PANCHAYATS NDA 50 LDF 19 UDF 29 DIST PANCHAYATS UDF LDF NDA TIE TVM MUNICIPALITIES OTH CORP LDF UDF NDA OTH UDF COPRPORATION - 6 UDF - 4  LDF- 1  NDA -1 victory for surprise, suRprise ! Historicstate capital BJP in *Results at the time of going to print. Final tally may vary Jubilant NDA workers celebrate their victory in Thiruvananthapuram Corporation in front of the counting centre at Mar Ivanios College on Saturday | B P Deepu  Riding on a strong anti-incumbency wave, Congress-led UDF scores big in local body elections  LDF loses four city corporations it held BJP takes Thiruvananthapuram A n i l S @ T’Puram S h a i n u M o h a n @T’Puram Local body elections often signal the shifting political trends in Kerala. On Saturday political Kerala wit, nessed one of the most striking comebacks of recent times, with the Congress-led UDF recording a decisive victory in the local body elections, and the ruling LDF suffered a surprise and potentially debilitating set back. Compounding the CPM’s woes, the BJP-led NDA quite emphatically snatched the prestigious Thiruvanathapuram city corporation from its hands in a victory that has the potential to fuel the saffron party’s growth in Kerala in the coming years. Riding on a strong anti-incumbency wave, the UDF registered a resounding victory, winning four out of six municipal corporations, seven district panchayats, 54 municipalities, 79 block panchayats and around 505 grama panchayats. The LDF suffered a humiliating defeat, as it lost four sitting municipal corporations, as many district panchayats, more than 100 grama panchayats, and around 20 municipalities. However, the biggest takeaway of the 2025 local body elections is the win that the BJP scripted in Thiruva n a n t h ap ur am c o r poration. Spurred by the party national leadership’s long-term desire to win the civic body in the state capital, the NDA secured 50 out of 100 wards that went to polls -- a substantial rise from the 34 seats it held in the previous council. The BJP win invited applause from the party top brass, including We see this as a major victory and it is the result of the work of Team UDF. The CPM had adopted BJP’s communal agenda, which ultimately benefited the latter, particularly in T’Puram. - V D Satheesan, Cong UDF workers and supporters celebrate the front’s victory in the elections held to the Kochi corporation on Saturday | T P Sooraj Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who called it a watershed moment in Kerala politics. “The people are certain that development aspirations of the state can only be addressed by our party posted Modi on ‘X’. ,” The election outcome, widely perceived as a precursor to the assembly elections just a few months away , have come as a major confidence booster for the UDF, while it has obviously set the alarm bells ringing for the LDF. None would have thought that a battered and bruised UDF, reeling under the recent Rahul Mamkoottathil fiasco, would emerge a winner. On the other hand, the NDA, which was struggling to find a foothold in state politics, has man- aged to prove itself a formidable opponent to both fronts. In an election that was seen as a referendum on the decade-long CPMled rule under Pinarayi Vijayan, the LDF was banking mainly on the recent increase in social welfare pensions to win people’s mandate, while its cyber team focused on the Mamkootathil issue. The voters, however, were in no mood to take the bait, and chose to hand the Left a resounding defeat that’s sure to trigger an intense introspection. On the other hand, the UDF and the NDA based their campaign on the Sabarimala gold theft, which seems to have yielded desired results. Harrowing time for paying fans post Messi sudden exit Fans turned violent after Leo Messi suddenly left the Salt Lake Stadium due to security reasons d | PTI As h u t o s h A c h a r ya @ Salt Lake Stadium stands WITH THIS ISSUE The Wars Behind the War PLUS 12 P AGES EXPRESS READ Resolution in US House against tariff on India New Delhi: Three Democratic lawmakers in the US House of Representatives introduced a resolution seeking to terminate tariffs of up to 50% imposed by President Donald Trump on imports from India. All for a glimpse of Messi. For a Messi fan, it’s all that matters. As soon as I reached the gates of the Salt Lake Stadium at 8.30 am, fatigue from overnight journey just disappeared. The stadium was draped in Argentina colours, with people in jerseys with Messi written on their backs. There were giant cutouts and paintings of him as well. Fans from across the country were there. My ticket allowed me to one part of the stands. More than 60,000 fans would have gathered inside by 10.30 am. There was a cultural programme highlighting India and Argentina, followed by a friendly football match between Diamond Harbour Club and Mohun Bagan. Fans were kept engaged, but as soon as the announcer hollered in stadium PA system that Messi would be entering, at around 11.30 am, excitement quickly turned into a frenzy Fans began climbing the . barriers placed in front of the stands to catch a glimpse of the World Cup winner. As Messi entered the stadium in a car, accompanied by his Inter Miami teammates Rodrigo de Paul and Luis Suárez, things started getting out of hand. Fans were delirious. However, the scenes turned chaotic after guests in the cordoned-off VVIP area crowded around Messi, blocking his view. The event organiser was heard repeatedly urging them to step aside. All of a sudden the situation went out of control and Messi and his entourage were escorted out of the stadium. We in the crowd did not know what was happening. Word spread that Messi had left. This sparked anger. Bottles were hurled onto the field, banners were torn down. Fans began breaking chairs and throwing them in the s t a d i u m . S eve r a l p e o p l e breached barricades and entered the ground. Bengal CM orders high level probe Stating that she was shocked and deeply disturbed by mismanagement” at the Leo Messi’s event, CM Mamata Banerjee announced constitution of a high-level panel to probe incident. “I am constituting an enquiry panel under the chairmanship of Justice (Rtd) Ashim Kumar The LDF could not achieve expected results. The front expected a comfortable win across the state. The reasons will be examined and necessary corrections will be made — Pinarayi Vijayan, CM In a major upset, the CPM lost its four-decade-long dominance in the state capital as it ceded the Thiruvananthapuram city corporation to the BJP . The verdict marks the BJP’s most significant local body victory in Kerala to date, while the UDF also registered a notable improvement in its seat tally. Former DGP R Sreelekha, BJP for mer district chief V V Rajesh and senior leader Karamana Ajith are the frontrunners for the mayor’s post. The election outcome is being widely interpreted as a reflection of strong anti-incumbency sentiments against the state government and the outgoing LDF administration which has ruled the city corporation for years. While the BJP improved its tally in the 101ward corporation, from 34 in 2020 to 50, the LDF went down to 29 from the previous 51. The Congress-led UDF, meanwhile, improved its performance, winning 19 wards — an increase from 10 last time. The poll results have triggered infighting within the CPM, while the BJP camp is elated over its best-ever perfor mance in the city corporation. The BJP leadership is buoyant following the historic win. Soon after the verdict. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to social media, hailing the party’s perfor mance in the corporation. BJP Thiruvananthapuram Central district president Karamana Jayan said the capital city would now witness a new phase of development. “There was a strong nexus between the UDF and the LDF. Their plan was for the UDF to capture BJP wards and then help the LDF return to power. Ward delimitation was also carried out in a manner that suited them,” he ● More on P7 said. CPM targeting Jamaat-eIslami led to minority consolidation Left campaign over Rahul Mamkootathil fiasco failed to yield desired results Last-minute welfare measures, announced days before the election, failed to influence voters In KC battle, Joseph trumps Jose K Mani Kottayam: In the elections that drew attention due to the rivalry between Kerala Congress factions in Central Travancore, the P J Joseph faction has made notable progress under the wings of UDF, while the KC(M) suffered an unexpected setback in its strongholds. P4 INSIDE Satheesan’s calculus LDF slip and a UDF wave | P4 Pinarayi’s invincibility myth breaks as LDF strategy falters | P4 Revelling over Tvm corp win, BJP ignores bruises | P4 The waqf effect? munambam switches to NDA | P5 IUML has last laugh as CPM stumbles on muslim pitch | P6