Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Kochi visit on Wednesday (March 11, 2026) to launch a host of projects in Kerala has attained political overtones with the State Ministers and a section of Congress leaders choosing to boycott it for various reasons.

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The event comes at a time when all political parties are busy finalising the list of candidates and strategies for the upcoming Assembly elections.

Besides inaugurating the projects at a function to be attended by Union Ministers and BJP State president Rajeev Chandrasekhar at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium at Kaloor in Kochi, Mr. Modi will kickstart the poll campaign of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at another venue set up inside the stadium on the day.

Though the advertisements of the projects to be inaugurated by Mr. Modi had featured the names of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his Cabinet colleagues and Public Works Department (PWD) Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas, Electricity Minister K. Krishnankutty and Minister for Local Self-Governments M. B. Rajesh and Congress leaders Benny Behannan and Hibi Eden, MPs and Uma Thomas MLA, the Ministers and Mr. Behannan will keep off the function.

Mr. Behannan, who is in Delhi to attend the Parliament session, said he would not have attended the function even if he were in the State as he “did not want to endorse the political campaign of the BJP.”

However, Mr. Eden said he will attend the function, which, according to him was his “right as a Member of Parliament”, though he was “opposed to the BJP’s move to make it part of its poll campaign.”

Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s role slammed

He said the presence of Mr. Chandrasekhar at a government function is “a reflection of the BJP’s intention to make it a political event, which cannot be appreciated.” The organisers have chosen a BJP leader to translate the speech of Mr. Modi, which again is “an objectionable act”, he said.

Ms. Thomas said she will not turn up for the event as she will be “busy attending another function” in her Assembly constituency, Thrikkakara.

The Chief Minister, who does not have any public programmes for the day, will stay put at Thiruvananthapuram. There was “no proper communication” regarding the Prime Minister’s Kochi programme. Hence, the Chief Minister will not attend the event, sources indicated.

While Mr. Riyas was not invited to the function, Mr. Rajesh preferred to attend other functions in his constituency, which is viewed as a mark of protest for not inviting the PWD Minister to the function.

Mr. Rajesh said he was invited to the event “very late” and that his Cabinet colleague was “left out” from the function. “These factors influenced my decision not to attend the event,” he added.