Rahul Mamkootathil of the Congress party celebrated a victory in Palakkad after winning the Assembly constituency seat in the recent byelection. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) successfully retained the Palakkad seat with a significant margin of 18,840 votes. Rahul Mamkootathil secured 58,389 votes, which accounted for 42.27% of the total votes. The BJP’s C. Krishnakumar finished second with 39,549 votes, and the Left Front’s Dr. P. Sarin ended third with 37,293 votes. In a historical context, BJP had previously closed the gap with Congress in past elections but saw a decline in their vote share this time. Meanwhile, the Left’s candidacy, involving a former Congress social media in-charge, surpassed its own previous performance. The election was marked by controversies, mudslinging, and high-profile defections, with accusations between the Congress and CPI(M) regarding extremist affiliations and communal tactics.
In Chelakkara, the CPI(M) maintained its dominance by securing the seat for the seventh consecutive time, with U.R. Pradeep winning by a margin of 12,201 votes. UDF’s Ramya Haridas came second, while BJP’s K. Balakrishnan ranked third. This byelection in Chelakkara was necessary following K. Radhakrishnan’s election to the Lok Sabha, who had previously secured a majority of 39,400 votes in 2021 during a strong Left wave.
Original Story https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/udf-ldf-retain-seats-in-kerala-assembly-byelections/article68903008.ece
Category : Kerala
Tags:
