The uncertainty over the candidature of Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Wayanad, a bastion of the United Democratic Front, has put a dampener on the election scene in the constituency.
While only a few days remain for the filing of nominations and many have already filed their papers, including Left Democratic Front candidate P.P. Suneer, the Congress high command is yet to announce the candidate of the party.
But UDF allies and party workers are upset at the way the issue has dragged on. The District Congress Committees in Malappuram and Wayanad have passed resolutions demanding the Congress leadership to take a speedy decision.
Even UDF district convener and leader of the Indian Union Muslim League P.P.A. Kareem publicly expressed his disappointment at the uncertainty over the issue. But Wayanad District Congress Committee president I.C. Balakrishnan said they were confident of the candidature of Mr. Gandhi in the constituency.
LDF upbeat
“Definitely, the LDF is enjoying the early bird advantage and has got the upper hand. We have completed three rounds of campaigning and the fourth round began today,” Vijayan Cherukara, Communist Party of India Wayanad district secretary, said.
The uncertainties and delay in the UDF about the candidate would be a positive factor for the LDF, he said.
Moreover, the LDF had wrested four of the seven Assembly segments in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency from the UDF in the Assembly elections in 2016, he said.
The Bharath Dharma Jana Sena has fielded V.V. Paily, 64, of Vathyat as the National Democratic Alliance candidate in the constituency.
The constituency has, since its formation in 2009, voted for the Congress in the 2009 and 2014 elections. However, the Congress may find it tough this time around after the death of the sitting MP M.I. Shanavas.
In the 2014 elections, Shanavas defeated Communist Party of India’s Sathyan Mokeri by a margin of 20,870 votes, a far cry from 2009 when he defeated M. Rahmathulla of the CPI by a margin of 1,53,439 votes.
Major issues
Farmer suicides owing to drop in crop prices and crop loss; night traffic ban on the Kozhikode-Mysuru Highway 212; Nilambur- Sulthan Bathery- Nanjangud rail line; ‘apathy’ of the government in setting up the proposed medical college; and land for the landless tribesmen will be among the topics of discussion in the poll campaign.
The constituency has 13,25,788 voters - 6,55,786 men and 6,70,002 women.