A recent episode of Let Me Explain by The News Minute, presented by Pooja Prasanna, should qualify as one of the best comical propaganda for its central claim that the Bharatiya Janata Party’s limited electoral success in Kerala stems from the “ideological clarity” of the Left and the Congress.
The episode argues that the CPI(M) and the Congress, despite being rivals in the state, possess deeper ideological roots and organisational discipline, which together act as a firewall against the BJP. But there is a fundamental contradiction: the same Left and Congress that contest each other bitterly in Kerala are allies at the national level under the I.N.D.I bloc.
But for The News Minute, this is “ideological clarity” ignoring the evident political convenience of opposing each other locally while coordinating nationally wherever the BJP emerges as a challenger.
BJP, regardless of whether one supports or opposes it, has maintained a largely uniform ideological position across states, while the Left–Congress arrangement shifts its stances. Both of them don’t even stand on the same page on many issues. How does this qualify as ideological consistency or clarity?
The TNM video also downplays demographic and community factors. Kerala’s electoral outcomes cannot be explained primarily through claims of ideological superiority. They are shaped significantly by voting patterns rooted in religious demography. Sections of Muslim and Christian communities vote tactically to prevent BJP victories, irrespective of whether their immediate contest is with the Left or the Congress. It is just consolidated communal politics of Left and Congress.
Another issue is the timing of the episode. The video was released shortly before local body elections in Kerala, a moment when narratives can influence voter perception. After the results were declared and how BJP actually did well on the ground, there was no visible follow-up analysis or reassessment. This only highlights how the framing functioned more like pre-poll messaging than post-facto scrutiny.
TNM presents itself as a platform representing southern India’s perspectives, distinct from what it often characterises as northern or national media narratives.
But it is nothing more than an unofficial mouthpiece for Congress, Leftists and Dravidianists.
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