The devastating landslide that destroyed three villages in Wayanad, Congress’ stellar performance in the Lok Sabha elections and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s maiden electoral victory are important events that shaped the socio-political landscape of Kerala in 2024.
The Justice Hema Committee report created a stir in political circles with the revelations of sexual exploitation and harassment in the Malayalam film industry. After this report came to light, rape allegations were made against some prominent actors including ruling Marxist Communist Party (CPI-M) MLA and actor M. Mukesh.
Torrential rains led to massive landslides in the Churalamala and Mundakkai areas of Wayanad on July 30, resulting in over 200 deaths, several injuries and thousands rendered homeless. It is considered one of the worst natural disasters in the history of Kerala. Hundreds of people were buried under the debris and many were rescued by the army and other rescue agencies.
The disaster again highlighted the urgent need for better disaster management and preparedness in the southern state. The state often faces adverse weather conditions due to climate change.
Due to slow rehabilitation efforts in the state, the lives of the victims of this disaster are not able to get back on track. The state government has alleged that the reason for this slow pace is the alleged discriminatory attitude of the central government, against which it has approached the court.
Another hurdle in implementing rehabilitation efforts was removed when the Kerala High Court ruled that the government could acquire land from two private estates to build a ‘model township’ for landslide victims and The court rejected the petitions of the companies challenging the government’s decision.
In the political field, Kerala witnessed some surprising results. During the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress-led opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) defeated the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the state. The UDF won 18 Lok Sabha seats, while the Left could win only one seat.
However, it was a matter of happiness for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that it won its first Lok Sabha seat in the southern state. Thrissur voters supported actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi and helped BJP win the seat.
Analysts say these election results reflect a possible change in voter preferences in the southern state.
Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also entered the election fray for the first time this year from Kerala. He won the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election held in November by a huge margin of more than four lakh votes.
He surpassed the victory margin recorded by his brother Rahul Gandhi a few months ago. Rahul Gandhi had won from this seat in the Lok Sabha elections. He had also won from Rae Bareli seat in Uttar Pradesh due to which he left the Wayanad seat and his sister won the by-election.
The script of shocking revelations in the Malayalam cinema world was unveiled when the Justice Hema Committee report regarding sexual exploitation came into limelight. The executive committee of the ‘Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes’ (AMMA) was dissolved due to sexual harassment allegations against several actors.
The Special Investigation Team of Kerala Police, formed to investigate such allegations, investigated several actors including Mukesh, Siddique and Edavela Babu.
Kerala lost one of its great literary figures, MT Vasudevan Nair, this year. Famous Malayalam writer and Jnanpith awardee Nair passed away on December 25. He was 91 years old.
