Last year the Supreme Court outlawed an age-old ban on entry of women aged 10-50 years into the Sabaramala Temple (above) in Kerala. (Photo: Facebook/SabarimalaDevaswom

A month after the Lok Sabha elections results, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPIM) has accepted that the issue of women's entry into the Sabarimala temple impacted its performance in the general elections. In a report that reviewed the party's performance in the Lok Sabha polls, CPI(M)'s Central Committee has observed that Sabarimala was among the major issues that impacted the election outcome in Kerala.

Of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, the Left front was able to win just two. This is despite the fact that the Left Front is currently in power in Kerala. The Congress and its allies were able to win 18 seats and though the Bharatiya Janata Party did not win seats, it was able to increase its vote share.

"BJP and UDF (a Kerala-based alliance led by the Congress) utilised the scenario of two women entering the Sabarimala temple. This campaign created a huge impact among the party sympathisers," the CPI's internal report states.

This observation is important because this is for the first time that the CPI(M) has admitted that the Sabarimala issue created a negative impact on its sympathisers, which in turn affected the election results.

Kerala was in the news last year after the Supreme Court outlawed the age-old ban on entry of women of menstrual age (10-50 years) into the Sabarimala temple, which is one of the holiest shrines in the state.

The Supreme Court verdict resulted in a massive hue and cry in the state as devotees vowed to "preserve" the temple's traditions of barring women's entry. Left's opposition in Kerala, the Congress and the BJP, attacked the government for mishandling the situation and accused it of having failed to maintain law and order as violent clashes were reported from many parts of Kerala.

Amid all this, two women braving Sabarimala devotees and social backlash succeeded in entering Sabarimala temple under police protection. The women's entry into the temple further charged the political environment in the state.

Meanwhile, besides Sabarimala, the CPI(M) in its report said the party's strength has drained in Kerala. "To a large extent, the party's independent strength and political influence has drained. There is a dip in vote share in regions where the party was influential. This is a cause of concern," it said.

"In Kerala, the failure was in understanding the mindset of the people. It is a serious issue," the report said.

More than the Congress' success (winning 15 Lok Sabha seats), the CPI(M) said the real concern is the BJP managing to increase its vote share in Kerala.

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