High-pitched Lok Sabha election campaign draws to close in Kerala

There are 227 candidates in the fray for 20 seats, half of which are witnessing fierce triangular contests

The month-long high voltage campaigning for 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala came to a close on Sunday with sporadic incidents of violence in many places . Congress candidate in Aalathur constituency Remya Haridas suffered injuries in stone pelting and had to be hospitalised.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi waves at the audience during an election rally, in Wayanad district of Kerala on April 17, 2019. (Vivek R Nair /HT Photo)

“Facing defeat the CPI (M) is indulging in violence in many areas of the state. It is sad, police are not taking action against CPI (M) hooligans,” said state Congress chief Mullapally Ramachandran.

Voting takes place on April 23.

There were skirmishes at many places in the state capital Thiruvananthpuram also. Former Defence Minister A K Antony’s road show along coastal areas was allegedly blocked by CPI(M) workers and police clamped prohibitory orders in Vatakara in north Kerala after clashes.

AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi campaigned in her brother Rahul Gandhi’s second constituency Wayanad in north Kerala on the last day while Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held a road show in Sultan Bathery.

While the UDF hopes to sweep the state with Congress president’s sudden entry in Wayanad, the ruling LDF thinks that it can better its tally with the performance of Pinarayi Vijayan government and its handling of the floods lst year. The BJP which is still on the fringes in Kerala’s political landscape hopes to ride on the emotional Sabarimala wave to break the bipolar polity of the state.

Union Minister Smriti Irani, who is opposing the Congress president in Amethi in Uttar Pradesh, was expected to attend the concluding campaign in Wayanad but dropped her plan after she was indisposed, said NDA sources. BJP president Amit Shah’s road show in Pathanamthitta on Saturday was disrupted due to heavy downpour.

The state has 2.61 crore voters - 1,34, 66,521 women and 1,26, 84, 839 men and 174 transgender voters. There are 227 candidates in the fray for 20 seats. At least half of the seats are witnessing fierce triangular contests. The maximum number of candidates is in Wayanad with 22. Out of 20 seats, the Congress-led UDF won 12 and CPM-led LDF won eight seats in 2014.

Among the prestigious constituencies are Wayanad, Thirubvananthapuram and Vatakara. In Wayanad, Rahul Gandhi’s main rivals are NDA’s Thushar Vellapally and CPI’s P P Suneer. In Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor who is trying for a hat-trick is up against former Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan and former minister C Divakaran of the CPI. In north Kerala’s Vatakara, Kannur strongman P Jayarajan of the CPI (M) is taking on former PCC president K Muralidharan.

Pathnamthitta where the famed hill temple Sabarimala is situated is also witnessing a major contest with two-time MP Anto Anotny of the Congress up against BJP’s K Surendran and Veena George of the CPI (M).

Stakes are high for all three parties in the state is witnessing triangular contests for the first time. It had always been a bipolar contest between the UDF and LDF but this time the BJP is trying hard to make capital out of the Gandhi’s sudden entry in Wayanad and the Sabarimala issue.