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Updated: Jul 24, 2019 18:54 IST

After a poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections, the ruling in CPI(M) in Kerala has started a week-long house-to-house campaign on Tuesday and a social media outreach to win back its support base.

Out of 20 Lok Sabha seats in the state, the party managed to win only one. Its vote percentage also dipped by 10%, first in three decades.

CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who visited a couple of houses in Thiruvanathapuram on Tuesday, admitted that the Sabarimala controversy over allowing women of all ages to the hill temple has created some misunderstanding among believers and the party will take steps to clear those doubts

Party insiders said that during the mass contact programme many people asked them why the Kerala government was in hurry to implement the September 28 Supreme Court order on Sabarimala.

“We have made it clear that we are not against Sabarimala or the believers. There have been some differences of opinion in the minds of the people. We will work to see that whatever differences they have are cleared,” Balakrishnan said, adding that some political parties made it an issue and fanned unnecessary doubts.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also started a Facebook live to address public issues. In the one-hour programme every Sunday, people can ask questions to the CM.

On Sunday, the first day of the programme, the CM devoted most of his time to criticise the media saying they were playing up only negative things and burying important issues. Vijayan has asked all ministers to go live in comings days. “The government is forced to explore other venues to reach out to the people,” he said.

Statistics show that in social media outreach, Vijayan is far behind. BJP MP and actor Suresh Gopi way ahead with 1,650,570 followers on Facebook, Congress’s Thiruvanathapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, who has close to seven million Twitter followers on Twitter, has 1,223,415 followers on Facebook. Former CM Oommen Chandy has 1,057,289 followers, Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala has 987,426 while Vijayan has 837,643 followers on Facebook.

“We are not speaking much, people are talking now. We have to win their hearts again,” said politburo member M A Baby.

The CPI(M) has asked its cadres to participate in social and humanitarian activities to reach out to masses. Party leaders are confident of bouncing back after the poor results in parliamentary polls, but admit that serious course correction is needed.

What really worries the CPI(M) is that the BJP and the RSS is are trying to gain ground in Kerala after making inroads in West Bengal and Odisha. The BJP has made it clear that Kerala top on its agenda now. “We are aware of dangers ahead. But we are sure the cradle of secularism will not succumb to communal forces,” said Baby.