Whether the ruling LDF wins or loses, the Chief Minister, Mr V.S. Achuthanandan, will go down in Kerala’s electoral history as a wily politician who set the agenda for campaign 2011.
He was the playmaker and his opponents merely reacted.
Thanks to him, the staple of the debate was the ice cream parlour sex scandal case and other allegations against the leaders of the Opposition.
Mr Achuthanandan based his anti-corruption campaign on the conviction of an Opposition politician, Mr R. Balakrishna Pillai, and the damning disclosures in the sex scandal. Both leaders being in the dock proved to be a liability for the Congress-led combine.
Had it been not for the defence minister, Mr A.K. Antony, the UDF would have been poorer.
Mr Antony made all the difference but after a few days of his high voltage campaign, he seemed to run out of steam.
However, Mr Achutha-nandan kept on trumpeting his crusades among admiring crowds, who loved the way he spoke and his words.