The new chief minister, Mr Oommen Chandy, does not face an immediate threat to his government which runs on a slender majority since even the Opposition Left Democratic Front would not aspire to create instability and risk another election.
This may well hold good for a few months but from the first Assembly session, the thinly poised government would have the task of 24/7 floor management.
The Opposition could demand for a vote in the House quite often, catching the treasury benches off guard. The government wouldn’t fall just because the Opposition has called for a division. It falls only if it’s in minority on a finance bill or a confidence vote.
The ruling UDF has veterans to manage the floor. But if the full UDF contingent is not present to ensure the majority, it would foment a negative image and give ideas to the Opposition.
These are early days to discuss such scenarios but competitive coalition politics is all about such strategies.
Mr Chandy is secular if nothing else, but interested quarters are already branding his government as being minority-dominant.
It’s this image that Mr Chandy will have to bust by being fair to all sections of people, without fear or favour, and being extra concerned about those that require targeted benefits of the state.
Kerala has been fortunate to have such robust community organisations that they blend into the mainstream with relative ease.
The recent elections are a vindication of how the Kerala polity responds democratically to social aspirations. The ruling UDF has 72 legislators of whom 28 are Muslim, Christian 19, Nair 15, backward Hindu 10, whereas the Opposition Left Democratic Front has 39 backward Hindus, Nair 11, Christian 10 and Muslim eight. Mr Chandy is going to Delhi on Thursday with a list of Congress ministers to straighten the community balance in his ministry. But being proactive with big ticket investments and curbing corruption, Mr Chandy could bust communal shibboleths.