Political witch-hunt fuelled RSP’s resurgence: N.K. Premachandran

For N.K. Premachandran, MP, the 2026 Assembly election results represent far more than a simple shift in seat arithmetic; they mark the end of a decade defined by “State-sponsored marginalisation.” He views Revolutionary Socialist Party’s (RSP) return to the legislative map as a definitive public rebuttal to alleged political hunting led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. “The mandate was fuelled by deep-seated public resentment toward Chief Minister’s individual style of governance and the collective sympathy for a party that was systematically pushed to the periphery of Kerala’s democratic spaces,” says the veteran RSP leader.

He adds that the victory is particularly sweet for RSP given the decade of political witch-hunt the party endured following its crossover to the UDF in 2014. The depth of the Chief Minister’s hostility, Mr. Premachandran points out, was best evidenced by a specific government directive that essentially sought to erase the RSP from public life. He notes with visible indignation that the government issued orders to exclude any party without an MLA from participating in official State functions. “There were calculated efforts to strip RSP of its rightful place in public life which ultimately backfired at the ballot box. From being barred from official events to being unceremoniously removed from the advisory boards of local hospitals and Krishi Bhavans, RSP was treated as a political pariah. Despite having a Lok Sabha seat that encompasses seven different Assembly segments, the State administration refused to grant the RSP even the basic protocol or representation at the local level while extending those very same courtesies to the BJP,” he says.

Beyond the systemic exclusion, Mr. Premachandran carries the scars of a personal smear campaign. “For years, the CPI(M) narrative painted me as a self-serving leader who shackled a historic leftist movement to the Congress for my own parliamentary survival,” he says. This fear of being recorded in history as the man who presided over the RSP’s extinction was his constant companion during the party’s two terms of zero representation in the Assembly. “The 2026 sweep has finally lifted that burden, proving that the party’s ideological core remained intact despite the LDF’s efforts,” he says.

While RSP’s resurgence in Chavara and Kunnathur was part of a calculated recovery after narrow previous losses, the victory in Eravipuram and the stunning collapse of the CPI(M) fortress in Payyannur exceeded all expectations. “Payyannur, a CPI(M) fortress where a rebel contested in RSP seat, rewrote history. It was a huge surprise,” he says. He attributes this surge to an organic synergy at the grassroots-Congress machinery that fought with newfound grit to protect its ally, and an RSP base that worked with the raw sincerity of a group fighting for its very survival. “For RSP, the result is more than just a tally of seats, it marks the breaking of a decade-long siege to reclaim our political legacy,” he adds.