Explained : Padma Awards 2026: Political Messaging with Special Focus on Poll-Bound Kerala, TN, West Bengal and Its Impact

This combo image shows Padma Awardees for 2026, First row, from left, Yumnam Jatra Singh (Arts), Vishwa Bandhu (Arts), Thiruvarur Bhakthavatsalam (Arts), Techi Gubin from Arunachal Pradesh (Social Work), Taga Ram Bheel (Arts), Suresh Hanagavadi (Indigenous Medicine for Haemophilia), Simanchal Patro (Arts), Shrirang Devaba Lad (Agriculture), Shafi Shauq (Literature and Education), Second row, from left, Sangyusang S Pongener (Artss), SG Susheelamma (Social Work), Rama Reddy Mamidi (Animal Husbandry and Dairy), Rajasthapati Kaliappa Goundar (Artss), Raghupat Singh (Agriculture), Sunita Godbole (Medicine), R Krishnan (Arts), Pokila Lekthepi (Arts), Othuvar Thiruthani (Arts), Third row, from left, Nuruddin Ahmed (Arts), Nilesh Mandlewala (Social Work), Mohan Nagar (Environment), Mir Hajibhai Kasambahi (Arts), Mahendra Kumar Mishra (Literature and Education), Kollakkayil Devaki Amma G (Environment and aforestation), Khemraj Sundriyal (Artss), Kailash Chandra Pant (Literature and Education), K Pajanivel (Artss), Fourth row, from left, Inderjit Singh Sindhu (Social Work), Hally War (Social Work), Gafruddin Mewarti (Arts), Dr Shyam Sundar (Medicine), Dr Punniamurthy Natesan (Veterinary scientist), Dr Padma Gurment (Medicine), Dr Kumarasamy Thangaraj (Indian Geneticist), Dharmiklal Chunilal Pandya (Arts), Chiranji Lal Yadav (Arts), Fifth row, from left, Charan Hembram (Literature and Education), Budri Thati (Social Work), Brij Lal Bhat (Social Work), Bhiklya Ladakya (Arts), Bhagwadas Raikwar (Sports), Armida Fernandes (Medicine), Ram Chandra Godbole (Medicine), Anke Gowda (Literature and Education), Raghuveer Kehdkar (Arts). Photo: PTI

New Delhi: As the Union government announced the list of Padma awardees for the year on Sunday (January 25), the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government under prime minister Narendra Modi continued its now established convention of using the awards for subtle political messaging.

A total of 38 awardees were named from the poll-bound states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry. While the political subtext of the awardees from Kerala appear most stark, the list also included the BJP’s political opponents, as well as rewarded leaders from its own stable.

Notably three out of the five Padma Vibhushans, India’s second highest civilian award, has been given to personalities from Kerala, where the BJP is keen to form the state government. Tamil Nadu, where the BJP has till now failed to make inroads has the highest number of 13 Padma awardees, followed by West Bengal with 11, Kerala with 8, Assam and Puducherry with 5 and 1 respectively.

Former Kerala chief minister V.S. Achuthanandan, prominent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader from the state P. Narayanan and former Supreme Court judge K.T. Thomas have been awarded Padma Vibhushans. Apart from the three from Kerala, the other two Padma Vibhushans have been awarded to veteran actor Dharmendra (posthumously), who also served a term as a BJP MP, and violinist N. Rajam.

Actor Mammootty, also from Kerala, has been awarded a Padma Bhushan. The award to Mammootty comes after Malayalam superstar Mohanlal received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest honour in cinema, in September.

Veteran Communist Party of India- Marxist (CPI-M) leader Achuthanandan, who passed away last year, was known to be a vocal internal critic of his party, had been sidelined from the politburo in 2009 but remained a popular leader. The Padma Vibhushan to Achuthanandan comes as previous party leaders have declined Padma honours. In 2022, former West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had turned down the Padma Bhushan award offered by the Narendra Modi government. The CPI(M) had then said that the move was consistent with the party policy of declining awards from the state.

Vellappally Natesan, general secretary of the Sree Narayana Dharma Sangham (SNDP Yogam), which is a forum representing the Hindu Ezhava has been awarded the Padma Bhushan. His son Thushar Vellappally heads the Bharath Dharma Jana Sena, the organisation’s political arm and an NDA constituent in Kerala.

The 2024 Lok Sabha election saw BJP opening its account in Kerala and a sizable increase in its vote share, especially among the Ezhava community, which has traditionally supported the CPI(M).

The Padma Vibhushan to prominent RSS leader P. Narayanan is also significant ahead of elections. Narayanan, along with being a senior RSS leader, is also a journalist and an author who has written more than ten books. He has also served as the state organisation general secretary of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) – the BJP’s predecessor – and been a member of its national executive committee.

In a bid to project that the Padma awardees defy party lines, former Jharkhand chief minister Shibu Soren who passed away last year has been awarded the Padma Bhushan in a move being seen as an overture to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). Soren’s son and sitting Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren was jailed by the Modi government just two years ago, while the BJP was defeated in the 2024 assembly elections in the state.

While Soren thanked the centre for the honour to his father, he said that for the people of Jharkhand, he will remain a “Bharat Ratna”.

Bhagat Singh Koshyari, who was Maharashtra governor when Devendra Fadnavis was dubiously sworn in as chief minister, and later when the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was brought down has also been awarded the Padma Bhushan.

Veteran BJP leader V.K. Malhotra who has been a five-term MP, who passed away last year has also been given the Padam Bhushan posthumously. Padma Shri awardees include former UGC chairman  M Jagadesh Kumar who served a controversial tenure as Jawaharlal Nehru University Vice Chancellor.

The awardees from Tamil Nadu include K. Vijay Kumar who headed the operation against Veerapan, former health minister and polio specialist H. V. Hande, director of IIT Madras, Veezhinathan Kamakoti, agricultural scientist K. Ramasamy.

The 11 names from West Bengal include actor Prasenjit Chatterjee, theatre personality Harimadhav Mukherjee, Tabla player Kumar Bose and Kantha artist Tripti Mukherjee.

In the past the BJP government under Modi has used awards as rewards for its own leaders as well as overtures to leaders across party lines ahead of elections.

In the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections the Modi government had named celebrated Assamese singer Bhupen Hazarika and former President Pranab Mukherjee as recipients of the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award.

Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharat Ratna was awarded to Karpoori Thakur, L.K. Advani and Chaudhary Charan Singh.

A total of 131 Padma awards were announced by the centre on Sunday including five Padma Vibhushans, 13 Padma Bhushans and 113 Padma Shri awards.

This article went live on January twenty-sixth, two thousand twenty six, at fourteen minutes past four in the afternoon.

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