Kerala’s opposition United Democratic Front coalition scripted an impressive win in Malappuram Lok Sabha by-election with a huge margin of 171,038 votes.
UDF candidate P K Kunhalikutty, a leader of the Indian Union Muslim League, however, could not break the record of his predecessor E Ahamed, who won the seat by a 
mammoth 194,739 votes in 2014.
Kunhalikutty called it a victory for “secular politics”.
Both Kunhalikutty and his immediate rival M B Faisal, the young candidate fielded by the Communist Party of India (Marxist), which leads the ruling Left Democratic Front, improved their vote share in a big way.
The improved vote share and the narrowed down winning margin are attributed to the absence of the IUML’s traditional rivals, the Welfare Party of India (WPI), promoted by the Jama’at-e-Islami, and the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), in the election race.
Another radical group, the People’s Democratic Front (PDP) of jailed cleric Abdul Nasir Ma’dani, had backed the Marxists.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which fielded N Sreeprakash, ended up a distant third, in spite of a high-voltage campaign.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan blamed his party’s defeat on the “ganging up of communal forces like WPI and SDPI” in support of Kunhalikutty, an allegation the IUML denied.
“Such a huge victory, that too in a by-election, itself is a record,” said a beaming Kunhalikutty, who has set a new record as the highest vote catcher in Kerala.
“It is a victory of secular forces. In the present political climate, this victory assumes much significance.”
He polled 515,330 votes (55%) against Faisal’s 344,307 (36.81%) and Sreeprakash’s 65,657 votes (7.02%). Kunhalikutty’s is also the second highest victory margin in Kerala elections ever, after Ahamed, who died on February 1.
Congress leader M I Shanavas (Wayanad) holds the record for the third-highest winning margin (153,439 votes in 2009) followed by S Sivaraman (132,652 votes from Ottappalam in 1993) of the CPM who later joined the Congress Party.
“League played a dirty game to polarise votes on communal lines,” said defeated candidate Faizal, adding that it was not a political victory. 
In Malappuram, Muslims comprise an estimated 60% followed by Hindus (30%) and Christians (5%).
Kunhalikutty, 66, became a state legislator for the first time in 1982 and was inducted into K Karunakaran cabinet at a young age in 1991. Later, the four-time industries minister joined the A K Antony and Oommen Chandy cabinets.
The Communist Party of India (CPI), the second largest ruling coalition partner, also blamed communal polarisation for the opposition’s victory.