UDF Seeking Relevance by Aligning with Jamaat-e-Islami, Says CM Pinarayi Vijayan

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the people of Kerala are rejecting the UDF, and this is why many who were once with the UDF are now leaving the front in large numbers. He was speaking to the media in Kannur. When such erosion happens, the UDF looks for new ways to regain relevance. In that search, they have now tried to rally behind new forces—forces that cannot usually be part of any mainstream political front. Some are allies of the LDF, some are with the UDF, and some belong to neither. Those outside both fronts are organisations with communal extremist positions, the Chief Minister said.

Kannur: He stated that the UDF is openly aligning with such forces, and it is with this intention that the Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League have decided to join hands with the Jamaat-e-Islami. When they decided this, UDF leaders rushed to issue a “certificate of purity” for Jamaat-e-Islami. Congress and League leaders have been showering praise on the group. But among the Muslim masses, their view of Jamaat-e-Islami has not changed at all, the Chief Minister said. He added that Jamaat-e-Islami has long remained isolated from the Muslim community, and it is their own actions that caused that isolation.

He said the organisation has never believed in electoral politics nor committed to national issues. They have always maintained their own rigid positions. These communal extremist groups share a common trait — an ability to spread well-crafted lies. They propagate falsehoods so convincingly that they appear like truth. Like the “masters of lies,” they repeat their claims so many times that some people start believing them. The RSS does this effectively, and Jamaat-e-Islami also has the same expertise, he said.

The Chief Minister added that historically, minority sections who once kept away from the Communist movement have gradually changed their stance through lived experience. They have realised that distancing themselves was unnecessary, and that the left stood with them at every critical juncture. This understanding has created a significant shift in mindset.

Those who once strongly opposed the Left no longer hold such hostility. With majoritarian communalism rising dangerously across the country, people now clearly see who is willing to fight fearlessly against it. They recognise that it is the Left that stands up for them, even at great personal risk. These everyday experiences have changed perceptions deeply, he said.

As a result, the Left has become far more acceptable to minority communities. This positive shift—visible nationally, in Kerala, and at local levels—has deeply unsettled Jamaat-e-Islami. Those who view everything through the lens of religious identity cannot tolerate such acceptance for the Left, he added.

Jamaat-e-Islami now claims that the mindset of the Muslim masses is “incorrect,” the Chief Minister said. But because facts cannot be hidden, they are trying to transform lies into “truth.” They are sending trained male and female volunteers door to door with propaganda, with the intention of wiping out the positive perception people have developed about the Left.