As Kerala goes to the polling booth on April 6 to elect the members of the 140-membe Kerala Assembly, there are a few key constituencies that have drawn the attention of the nation.
The counting of votes will take place on May 2.
Politics in Kerala has traditionally been dominated by the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).
The two parties are facing each other once again for the 2021 Assembly election with the LDF being a clear favourite to return to power. On the other hand, the BJP is hoping to increase its tally in the polls.
In the 2016 assembly elections, the LDF had won 91 seats, defeating the UDF, which could only secure 47 seats in the election. The BJP won from Nemom seat.
Dharmadam: Pinarayi Vijayan vs C K Padmanabhan vs C Raghunath
Located in the politically volatile northern Kannur district, Dharmadam is the home turf of Pinarayi Vijayan and is witnessing a triangular contest between the Chief Minister, BJP’s C K Padmanabhan, and C Raghunath from Congress.
The grand old party wanted to field Kannur MP K Sudhakaran, an arch critic of Vijayan, from the high-profile seat but the plan did not materialise as the former was not ready to take up the challenge.
Now, the Congress is facing flak for fielding general secretary of Kannur District Congress Committee C Raghunath who is considered a weakling compared to Vijayan.
A bastion of the Marxist Communist Party, Vijayan garnered 87,329 votes in the 2016 Assembly polls while his rival Mambaram Divakaran of Congress could only secure 50,424 votes. BJP candidate Mohanan Mananthery could only manage over 12,000 votes.
The BJP-led NDA and the Congress-led UDF are all trying to make things hard for Vijayan in 2021 polls but given the CM’s clout in this constituency, it is highly unlikely that they will breach the Left fortress.
Manjeshwaram: AKM Ashraf vs K Surendran vs VV Rameshan
A stronghold of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), the Manjeshwaram assembly constituency is an important constituency for the BJP to make inroads into the state.
The saffron party has fielded Kerala state president K Surendran from Manjeshwaram, while the IUML has given a ticket to AKM Ashraf. The CPI(M) is banking on Manjeswaram district committee member VV Ramesan.
In the 2016 election, BJP’s K Surendran lost to IUML’s Abdul Razak by a mere 89 votes.
Surendran is one of the strongest candidates from the BJP and is also contesting from Konni, the epicenter of the Sabarimala agitation.
The IUML has huge support in this constituency with Muslims backing the party in all the polls. On the other hand, Hindu votes get divided as many vote for the BJP and the CPI(M). This division of votes is a serious cause of concern for the saffron party.
Meanwhile, the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), a political offshoot of Islamist outfit Popular Front of India (PFI), will support the Congress-led UDF in the Manjeswaram Assembly seat.
Kazhakuttam: Kadakampally Surendran vs Sobha Surendran vs Dr. SS Lal
The BJP has fielded Sobha Surendran from the Kazhakuttom assembly constituency in Thiruvananthapuram while Congress has fielded Dr. SS Lal from the constituency.
CPI(M)’s Kadakampally Surendran is seeking re-election from this seat.
Sabarimala issue will take center-stage in this important constituency as the saffron party came second in this seat in the 2016 assembly election.
Mattanur: KK Shailaja vs Illikkal Agasthy vs Biju Elakkuzhi
Located in the Kannur district of Kerala, Mattannur will go to poll on April 6, 2021.
CPI(M) leader and Minister of Health KK Shailaja is contesting from this seat.
Revolutionary Socialist Party of Kerala (Bolshevik) has fielded Illikkal Agasthy from the segment while the BJP has given the ticket to Biju Elakkuzhi.
In 2016, CPI(M) leader EP Jayarajan won the seat by defeating KP Prasanth from Janata Dal (United) with a margin of 43,381 votes.
Puthuppally: Oommen Chandy vs Jaick C. Thomas vs N Hari
Key candidates contesting in the 2021 Assembly elections from the Puthuppally constituency are Oommen Chandy of Congress, Jaick C. Thomas of CPI(M), and N Hari of BJP.
In the 2016 Assembly elections, Chandy won from this seat beating Jaick C Thomas of CPI(M) by a margin of 27,092 votes.
The 77-year-old veteran Congress leader is among the top contenders to be the chief minister if the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) gets a majority in the Kerala polls.
Chittur: K Krishnankutty vs Sumesh Achuthan vs V. Natesan
Janata Dal (Secular) leader and Kerala state president K. Krishnankutty is seeking re-election from this constituency while Congress has fielded Sumesh Achuthan from the seat. The saffron party is banking on V. Natesan.
In the 2016 Assembly elections, Krishnankutty had won from this seat beating K Achuthan of Congress by a margin of 7,285 votes.
