Kerala veteran CPI(M) leader G. Sudhakaran reveals ballot tampering in 1989 Lok Sabha polls

Former CPI(M) leader admits to tampering with postal ballots in 1989 Lok Sabha elections in Alappuzha constituency.

Former Minister and senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] leader G. Sudhakaran has revealed that postal ballots were tampered with in favour of the CPI(M) candidate in the Alappuzha constituency in the 1989 Lok Sabha elections.

Inaugurating a gathering of former NGO Union leaders in Alappuzha on Wednesday (May 15, 2025), Mr. Sudhakaran said that even “if the Election Commission is to initiate a case over the matter, it will not be a problem.”

“In 1989, when K.V. Devadas contested as the CPI(M) candidate from the Alappuzha Lok Sabha constituency, postal ballots belonging to members of service organisations were collected and brought to the party office. I was the election committee secretary at the time. Around 15% of the voters had cast their ballots for the opposing candidate. We verified those ballots and altered them,” he said.

Mr. Sudhakaran said that there was no obligation for all NGO Union members to vote for the Left Democratic Front.

“The NGO Union is a non-political organisation. People affiliated with any party can be a part of it. However, during elections, one should openly declare whom they are voting for. Do not think that if you seal the postal ballot and hand it over, no one will know your decision,” he added.

In 1989 polls, Vakkom Purushothaman of the Congress party defeated Mr. Devadas by a margin of over 25,000 votes.