Kottayam: The fight over a seat to contest local body polls has led to disgruntled exits and sudden switches across Kerala. In Kottayam, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is going about selecting candidates without any fuss. An influx of choices does not swamp it; instead, the party is pursuing prospective candidates in its own way.

For the past few weeks, posters of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have appeared on walls and poles across Kottayam, inviting citizens to run as candidates in the Kottayam municipality polls. The move has drawn attention at a time when aspirants in other political parties are competing fiercely for seats.

“There are many people who are dissatisfied with the current government and also with the opposition. They want to bring real change, but often cannot contest because they don’t get party seats. We launched this initiative keeping them in mind,” said Francis Kooroth, Kottayam Mandalam president of AAP.

“Our party has been working on several initiatives in Kottayam, but it doesn’t have the visibility of major parties, so our growth has been slow. Since we started calling for candidates through posters and Facebook posts, more people have reached out to us,” he added.

While the response has been encouraging, the party has set specific selection criteria. Interested candidates must have a strong record of community involvement, be well respected locally, and maintain a clean image with no criminal history. They should also be financially independent.

“Since party funds are limited, candidates must be capable of meeting their campaign expenses. The party will support them in activities like house visits, printing posters, and other election work,” said Francis.

AAP’s Kottayam office, located at Eerayil Kadavu, has over 5,000 registered members, though only a fraction are active participants. “During the period of inactivity, some members lost hope. We moved to the new office just a year ago, and active members have no objection to fielding new faces as candidates,” Francis noted.

The party is currently contesting in five wards of the Kottayam Municipality, wards 3, 4, 9, 20 and 52. Although none of the current candidates were selected through the poster campaign, the search for suitable contenders continues and will remain open until a few days before the nomination deadline.