Published Oct 31, 2024 | 1:39 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 31, 2024 | 1:39 PM
UDF, LDF and NDA actively preparing for the upcoming elections. (Supplied)
With Kerala gearing up for the by-elections in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, and Palakkad and Chelakkara Assembly constituencies, political parties contesting them have geared up by deploying star campaigners to draw maximum voter attention.
National parties Congress and BJP have deployed high-profile figures, including top leaders and popular faces, to garner votes and increase the winnability of their candidates.
Meanwhile, the electoral battleground for by-elections has become clearer as the final lineup of candidates is now confirmed. A total of 33 contenders are set to vie for victory.
Prominent faces amongst the candidates include Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra — who is making her electoral debut — in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency. In the Palakkad Assembly constituency, Indian Youth Congress State President Rahul Mamkootathil is facing former state Congress social media head Dr P Sarin, who is contesting as an independent candidate endorsed by the CPI(M).
Congress leader and former Lok Sabha MP Ramya Haridas will face CPI’s UR Pradeep — who had represented the segment in the past — in the Chelakkara Assembly constituency. Independent MLA PV Anvar, who had floated a “social movement” DMK in Kerala, has assigned NK Sudheer to contest in Chelakkara.
Meanwhile, Kerala’s major political alliances — the CPI(M)-led LDF, the Congress-led UDF, and the BJP-led NDA — are pursuing distinctive strategies to win over the voters.
The electoral battlefield is further enlivened by independent candidates and regional party hopefuls.
A total of 16 candidates are in the fray in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, whereas Palakkad and Chelakkara Assembly constituencies have 10 and seven candidates respectively.
Ahead of the polling for the by-elections, the Congress and the BJP have released a list of 40 star campaigners each. The Congress list includes its President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other state and national leaders.
It also includes Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.
Others in the Congress’ list are TN Prathapan, Benny Behanan, KC Venugopal, Anto Antony, Adoor Prakash, PC Vishwanath, Dean Kuriakose, Deepa Daamunsi, K Sudhakaran, Hibi Eden, VD Satheesan, MK Raghavan, Ramesh Chennithala, VK Sreekandan, Rajmohan Unnithan, Shafi Parambil, Jebi Methar, Shashi Tharoor, Kodikunnil Suresh, K Muraleedharan, M Liju, Mullappally Ramachandran, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, KC Joseph, Mathew Kuzhalnadan, VM Sudheeran, MM Hassan, VT Balram, Shanimol Osman, KJ George, Chandy Commen, Uma Thomas, and PJ Kurian.
The BJP’s list includes Union Ministers George Kurian and Suresh Gopi, and other national and state leaders. BJP State President K Surendran also features in the list.
Others in the saffron part list are Prakash Javadekar, Aparajita Sarangi, Thushar Vellappally, AP Abdullakutty, Anil K Antony, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, V Muraleedharan, Kummanam Rajasekharan, PK Krishnadas, Krishnadas, CK Padmanabhan, AN Radhakrishnan, MT Ramesh, C Krishnakumar, P. Sudheer, Sobha Surendran, Dr KS Radhakrishnan, B Gopalakrishnan, P Reghunath, Devan Sreenivasan, Major Ravi, A Nagesh, Renu Suresh, E. Krishnadas, Narayanan Namboothin, TP Sindhumol, R Sandeep Vachaspati, VP Sreepadmanabhan, CR Praphul Krishnan, Nivedida Subramanian, Jiji Joseph, Mukundan Palliyara, TP Jayachandran Master, Unnikrishnan Master, Dr Abdul Salam, Prasanth Malavayal, ΚΚ Aneesh Kumar and KM Haridas.
With the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in place, the police have confiscated unaccounted cash totalling ₹16 lakh and banned narcotics worth ₹1.16 lakh during raids conducted in preparation for the Wayanad Lok Sabha by-election.
An official statement highlighted that the seizures were made during a police operation, with multiple agencies intensifying their monitoring efforts across the district’s assembly segments to guarantee a fair election.
To this end, nine flying squads, three anti-defacement teams, and 27 static surveillance units are actively engaged in thorough inspections and oversight in the area.
These teams aim to mitigate the influence of money, alcohol, drugs, and gifts on voters, ensuring compliance with the MCC.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
