E-Paper
Public campaigning ends ahead of first phase of Kerala local body polls
Campaigning for Kerala's local body elections ended with parties optimistic about their chances. Polls are on December 9 and 11, with results on December 13.
Public campaigning for the first phase of the elections to the three-tier rural and urban local bodies in Kerala culminated on Sunday evening as all three major fronts — Congress-led UDF, CPI(M)-led LDF and the BJP-led NDA — expressed optimism about performing well in the polls.
Roadshows, rallies and displays of strength by party cadres were the highlight at major intersections in the state as workers and the general public counted down the last hours of frenetic campaigning. Monday will mark silent campaigning before polling on Tuesday.
Local bodies in seven districts of the state — Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Idukki, Kottayam and Ernakulam -- will head to the polls on Tuesday (December 9).
In the second phase, polling will take place in the remaining 7 districts on Thursday (December 11).
The votes will be counted on December 13 (Saturday).
Barring 14 wards where candidates (all of LDF) won uncontested, elections will be held to 17,337 wards in 941 gram panchayats, 2267 wards in 152 block panchayats, 346 wards in 14 district panchayats, 3205 wards in 86 municipalities and 421 wards in six corporations across both phases.
In the first phase, a total of 11,168 wards across 595 local bodies are up for grabs. There are over 36000 candidates in the fray.
Among the hotly-contested local bodies in the December 9 polling are Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, Kollam Corporation and Kochi Corporation, all of which are currently governed by the LDF.
Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, in particular, has seen a fierce triangular contest with parties like the Congress highlighting former MLA KS Sabarinathan and the BJP putting up ex-DGP R Sreelekha as its potential mayoral choices.
In the polls, contemporary issues like the pilferation of gold at the Sabarimala temple, the serious sexual assault allegations against expelled Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, inflation and price rise and the slow pace of National Highway expansion works have been raised and discussed by all major fronts.
