Tough battle in Kerala

It is virtually a neck-and-neck race between the UDF and opposition LDF, for the 20 Lok Sabha seats where campaigning is at its peak and the final line-up becoming clear with 177 candidates left in the fray.

It is virtually a neck-and-neck race between the two traditional foes in Kerala, the ruling UDF and opposition LDF, for the 20 Lok Sabha seats in the state where electioneering has entered a decisive phase with the final line-up becoming clear with 177 candidates left in the fray.

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With the exit polls predicting a hung parliament, the fight between the two main partners of both fronts, Congress and the CPI-M, is in fact a contest between prospective allies at the Centre against the BJP-led NDA, though they are sharply divided on a host of ideological issues.

The BJP, the third major player in the state politics, is trying to capitalise on this issue in the hope of opening their account this time with O Rajagopal contesting in Thiruvananthapuram.

With issues ranging from Palestine to severe drought gripping Palakkad becoming hot election topics, canvassing has picked up momentum in the last few days in the state after remaining less noisy in the initial rounds.

The main campaign themes of LDF, are Congress' alleged ambivalent attitude to the Palestine issue, in a bid to woo minority votes, and the drought in the state, especially in Palakkad district, which has hit farmers hard.