Seat-sharing talks conclude; Congress to contest 95 seats, IUML gets 27: Satheesan
Kochi: Opposition Leader V D Satheesan on Wednesday said seat-sharing talks within the United Democratic Front (UDF) had concluded earlier, and the delay in the announcement was due to certain factors. Announcing the seat-sharing arrangement, he said the Indian National Congress will contest 95
Kochi: Opposition Leader V D Satheesan on Wednesday said seat-sharing talks within the United Democratic Front (UDF) had concluded earlier, and the delay in the announcement was due to certain factors. Announcing the seat-sharing arrangement, he said the Indian National Congress will contest 95
Kochi: Opposition Leader V D Satheesan on Wednesday said seat-sharing talks within the United Democratic Front (UDF) had concluded earlier, and the delay in the announcement was due to certain factors. Announcing the seat-sharing arrangement, he said the Indian National Congress will contest 95
Opposition Leader V D Satheesan on Wednesday said seat-sharing talks within the United Democratic Front (UDF) had concluded earlier, and the delay in the announcement was due to certain factors. Announcing the seat-sharing arrangement, he said the Indian National Congress will contest 95 seats, while the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) will get 27 seats and the Kerala Congress (Joseph) eight seats.
As part of the arrangement, Kerala Congress (Joseph) gave up its seats in Idukki and Ettumanoor. KC(J) has finalised a seat-sharing agreement with the Congress after conceding two seats, having contested 10 in the previous election. Seats were also exchanged, with Thrikkaripur going to the Congress and Kanhangad to Kerala Congress (Joseph).
Satheesan said the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), which contested five seats in the last election, will retain the seats this time. Satheesan added that Mattannur has been given to the Congress, while Payyannur has been allotted to the RSP. This comes days after state secretary Shibu Baby John announced four candidates and said discussions on the fifth seat were ongoing. He will contest from Chavara in Kollam, while Ullas Kovur, Adv Vishnu Mohan, and Santhosh Bhadran will contest from Kunnathur, Eravipuram, and Attingal, respectively. The UDF and RSP have also decided to back independent candidate V Kunjikrishnan in Payyannur.
Among other allocations, Anoop Jacob of Kerala Congress (Jacob) will contest from Piravom. The CMP has been allotted Thiruvananthapuram, a decision that has reportedly caused dissent among a section of local Congress leaders. The Kerala Democratic Party (KDP) has been allotted Pala, while the Revolutionary Marxist Party of India (RMPI) will contest from Vadakara. Meanwhile, the RMP has sought an additional seat. The party currently has one MLA, K K Rema, who represents Vadakara.
P V Anvar of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) will contest from Beypore as the UDF candidate. His candidature was the first to be announced in February, with KPCC president Sunny Joseph confirming the decision.
The Congress will take a call on the remaining independent candidates with the approval of its Central Election Committee, Satheesan said. Responding to questions on whether K Sudhakaran will contest the Assembly polls, Satheesan said the decision does not rest with him and urged the media to avoid speculation.