Chelakkara, Nov 11 (IANS) Three by-elections are taking place in Kerala — two Assembly and the Wayanad Lok Sabha. But for the ruling Pinarayi Vijayan-led CPI-M government, the stakes are very high at Chelakkara Assembly constituency.
While Chelakkara and Wayanad will go to the polls on Wednesday, election will be held at the Palakkad Assembly constituency on November 20.
One reason why for Vijayan the stakes are high is, Chelakkara is the only seat among the three, that the CPI-M-led Left holds.
Moreover, for the past 28 years, the Chelakkara (reserved for SC) is held by the CPI-M.
K. Radhakrishnan, the soft spoken local CPI-M veteran held the seat from 1998 to 2016 and his party colleague U.R. Pradeep took over from him in 2016 to 2021.
In the 2021 Assembly polls, Radhakrishnan returned, only to vacate after he won from the Alathur (reserved SC) Lok Sabha seat in the April 26 Lok Sabha polls and hence the present by-election is taking place.
Incidentally, Radhakrishnan won by a margin of 39,400 votes in the 2021 Assembly polls.
From the Chelakkara Assembly seat, the Congress has fielded Ramya Haridas, who failed to retain her Alathur Lok Sabha seat in the Lok Sabha polls held this year.
Though Haridas lost to Radhakrishnan in the Lok Sabha polls, she managed to bring down his lead from 39,400 votes in the Chelakkara Assembly segment which comes under the Alathur Lok Sabha seat to around 5,000 votes and that is the reason the Congress campaign managers expect things will turn good for Haridas.
The CPI-M has brought in former CPI-M legislator Pradeep while the BJP has fielded K. Balakrishnan.
Apart from these three, there are three other candidates too.
However P.V. Anvar, the two-time Left supported Independent legislator after moving out from the Left has formed a new party, Democratic Movement of Kerala, and has fielded N.K. Sudheer, a former Congress leader.
This has caused hiccups for both the CPI-M led Left and the Congress party.
But on the last day of public campaign on Monday, Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan presently leading the campaign there is in high spirits and has said the Congress party will regain the Chelakkara seat, but veteran CPI-M legislator A.C. Moideen who is spearheading the campaign for Pradeep said Satheesan has every right to dream.
“Nothing is going to change and Pradeep will win hands down,” said Moideen.
For Vijayan, Chelakkara is going to be an acid test as if things don’t go the way the Left expects, the CM will be held responsible.
–IANS
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