How Padma Bhushan for Vellappally Natesan sharpens BJP’s Ezhava outreach calculations in Kerala

New Delhi: The Padma Bhushan awarded to SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan has triggered intense political scrutiny in Kerala, where the honour is being read less as a ceremonial recognition and more as a calibrated political signal from the Centre.

The award, announced amid ongoing political churn in the state, has drawn attention because of both its timing and the profile of the recipient. 

Vellappally has for decades been one of the most influential social leaders in Kerala, shaping discourse and mobilisation within the Ezhava community, which constitutes roughly 22 per cent of the state’s population and represents a decisive electoral bloc.

Political observers note that the Ezhavas have traditionally formed the backbone of the CPI(M)’s support base in Kerala. By conferring one of India’s highest civilian honours on Vellappally, the BJP-led Centre is widely seen as making a direct political outreach into this core constituency, signalling intent to disrupt long-standing alignments ahead of future Assembly elections.

The move mirrors a playbook the BJP has used elsewhere. In Uttar Pradesh, the conferral of the Bharat Ratna on Chaudhary Charan Singh ahead of the 2024 elections helped consolidate Jat support and ease the Rashtriya Lok Dal’s alignment with the NDA. 

Election data from that period showed a measurable benefit to the NDA, strengthening perceptions that civilian honours are increasingly being deployed as strategic political messaging.

In Kerala, the calculus is equally deliberate. Vellappally has not only been a social organiser but also a political entrepreneur. 

His Kerala-wide outreach campaign calling for Hindu unity “from Namboothiri to Nayadi under one umbrella” laid the groundwork for the formation of the Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS), which later aligned with the NDA. 

His son, Thushar Vellappally, currently serves as BDJS president.

Despite BDJS remaining within the NDA fold since its inception, Vellappally’s own political positioning has often been fluid. 

At different points, he has cooperated with the CPI(M) and even extended indirect support to the LDF, notably during controversies such as the Sabarimala women’s entry issue. 

This ambiguity constrained BDJS’s ability to emerge as a dominant political force, even though it occasionally played a decisive role in the NDA’s electoral advances in select pockets.

At the same time, Vellappally’s ideological positions, particularly his outspoken criticism of what he terms minority appeasement politics, have remained broadly aligned with the BJP’s larger narrative. 

Support for the NDA, therefore, has often been framed by his supporters as consistency with long-held views rather than opportunistic realignment.

The Padma Bhushan is being interpreted in this context as an institutional endorsement of Vellappally’s role as a bridge between social mobilisation and political consolidation. 

For the BJP, honouring the SNDP Yogam leader is also seen as an acknowledgment of the Ezhava community’s centrality in shaping Kerala’s future political direction.

Recent local body election results have already suggested erosion in the CPI(M)’s traditional dominance, raising the possibility of voter churn within its support base. 

Analysts argue that as the Left weakens, its core voters may increasingly gravitate towards formations perceived as electorally viable, particularly if fragmentation risks benefiting the Congress.

Within this framework, BJP strategists believe that consolidating Ezhava support could significantly strengthen the NDA’s prospects in Kerala. 

The award to Vellappally is thus being read not as an isolated honour, but as part of a longer political arc aimed at re-engineering caste and community alignments in the state.

Whether the Padma Bhushan translates into tangible electoral gains remains to be seen. But its political subtext is already clear: Kerala’s electoral chessboard is being reimagined, and the Centre has signalled that it intends to play a more assertive role in reshaping it.