Brisk polling has been reported from the five or six Assembly segments in Thiruvananthapuram district which are witnessing some of the prestigious fights with all three fronts - the outgoing CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF), main opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and spirited contender BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) - locked in fierce multi-cornered contests.
Among these are Nemom from where Kummanam Rajasekharan (BJP), former Mizoram Governor, takes on K Muraleedharan of the Congress and V Sivankutty of the CPI(M); Kazhakoottam, where Kadakampalli Suredran, Temple Administration Minister in the LDF government has run into strong opposition from firebrand Sobha Surendran (BJP) and SS Lal (Congress); and VV Rajesh, President of district BJP, confronts sitting MLA VK Prasanth (CPI(M) and debutant Veena Nair of the Congress.
When reports came in last (around 1 pm), Kazhakoottam had polled 40.11 per cent polling while Nemom had logged in 39.34 per cent. But Thiruvananthapuram, which houses the Government Secretariat with its army of government servants, lived up to its name of a laggard, polling only 32.76 per cent till 1 pm.
Meanwhile, reports of minor violence have come in from parts of the district from last evening involving CPI(M) and BJP workers. The BJP candidate from Kazhakkottam Sobha Surendran resorted to a sit-down protest on Tuesday alleging that CPI(M) workers are targeting fellow party workers. Earlier on Monday night, a motorcade of Congress candidate in Nemom, K Muraleedharan, had been attacked allegedly by BJP-RSS workers.