Major agitation by SDPI for creation of Tirur district

The Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) has launched a campaign for the division of Malappuram district, demanding the creation of a new district with Tirur as its headquarters. Under this agitation, the party will form a human chain from the Malappuram Collectorate to Tirur on 26 January, 2027, on the occasion of Republic Day.

The demand for the division of Malappuram district has been supported by parties such as Congress, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Welfare Party of India, and CPI(M) for administrative reasons. However, SDPI is the only party that has proposed a specific district structure with Tirur as the headquarters. Previously, CPI(M) had proposed the idea of a 'Valluvanad' district by joining Ponnani and surrounding taluks, but other parties have not provided any specific details on how Malappuram should be divided.

V.T. Ikramul Haq, Chairman of the SDPI Protest Committee, stated that they are not demanding a new district with Tirur as the headquarters because of a special affection for Tirur, but rather because bringing Tirur, Tirurangadi, and Ponnani taluks together will provide administrative convenience. The combined population of these three taluks is approximately 20 lakh.

SDPI has been demanding a Tirur district since 2010 and has conducted several protest demonstrations for it. The party claims that despite being the most populous district in the state, Malappuram ranks 14th in development, and its population puts heavy pressure on public services and administration. The party has presented inequalities in health, transport, and education in support of this demand.

According to statistical data, the population of Malappuram in the 2011 census was 41.12 lakh, while the total population of Idukki, Wayanad, Pathanamthitta, and Alappuzha was 52.51 lakh. Nevertheless, these four districts combined have four general hospitals and 1,364 beds, whereas Malappuram has only one hospital and 501 beds. Similarly, these four districts have 16 taluk hospitals and 1,591 beds, while Malappuram has seven taluk hospitals and 521 beds.

A major difference is also observed in the transport sector. Malappuram has 98 KSRTC ordinary buses, while Kollam has 415, Ernakulam has 325, and Thiruvananthapuram has 687 buses. According to the party, the number of buses per lakh people in Malappuram is 3, while in Idukki and Pathanamthitta it is 20 and in Wayanad it is 29.

In the education sector, there are 7.46 lakh students in Malappuram in the 2026 academic year, while there are 4.52 lakh students in the other four districts combined. Nevertheless, Malappuram has 1,571 schools, while these four districts have 2,124 schools. The party also drew attention to the lack of central government-run industrial centers in Malappuram.

SDPI says that the division and creation of Tirur district will benefit all people without caste or community discrimination. Haq further stated that they have no objection to the creation of other districts, but their objective is clear that Malappuram must receive first priority. The party criticized the state government's response and warned that if Tirur is not included in future district reorganization, the MPs and MLAs of Malappuram will face protests and their free movement in the district will be restricted.