Campaign for first phase of LSG polls ends

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Public campaign for the first phase of elections to the local self governments ended at 5 pm on Saturday.

Polling will take place in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Idukki, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod districts on November 2. As many as 31161 candidates are contesting from 9200 wards in the seven districts.

The next phase of the poll, covering the remaining seven districts, will take place on November 5 and the campaign for that phase will end on November 3.

The campaign for first phase reached its crescendo in the afternoon, with all parties organising a finale of their campaigns at important centres. The campaign has been generally free of violence or other problems and went on the usual lines and themes.

The UDF suffered a blow to its campaign towards the end on account of the Court order in the bar bribery case. The debate on the beef row with the BJP on one side and the Congress and CPI (M) on the other side led to people taking clear sides. THE BJP-SNDP alliance, which was a new development in the poll arena, struggled for headway owing to various problems.

In Thiruvananthapuram, an expensive campaign. Photos by Roy Mathew