Campaign Ends on Feverish Note
Heightened poll frenzy was witnessed in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency on Tuesday evening when the open campaign came to a close at 6 pm, with rival parties turning the campaign finale into a virtual show of strength
Clouds started gathering over the city skies in the afternoon itself but that did not deter party workers from assembling at Peroorkada Junction - the regular venue of the campaign finale in the city.
Since BJP supporters started coming in much early than their UDF and LDF counterparts, they could get hold of vantage points at the junction.The campaign frenzy started building from half past four onwards, when BJP workers did a dare-devil stunt by climbing atop a huge hoarding, featuring Narendra Modi and O Rajagopal, erected on top of a high-rise building.
Their aim was to take the BJP flag to the maximum height possible, in a bid to surpass tri-coloured helium-filled balloons put up by Congress workers.
While the BJP supporters dominated most parts of Peroorkada junction, Congress workers were also seen jostling for space. However, the number of LDF workers were very few when compared to their rivals. A handful of SDPI supporters also made their presence felt.
The BJP workers ensured that the poll finale was at its colourful best by bringing in supporters wearing Modi masks and T-shirts.
Adding to the fun were stilt walkers in BJP colours, treading tall among all the other campaigners and party workers atop horses.
An autorickshaw named Modi, bearing a huge cut-out of the BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate, was another highlight. However, the showstoppers from the BJP were a few missiles, which when fired, exploded with a huge sound and unfurled BJP flags mid-air. These party flags, with mini parachutes attached, slowly descended on the supporters, evoking loud cheers from them.Not to be left behind, Congress workers were seen raising the pitch of their campaign by waving their party flags in a frenzy and belting out their campaign songs to the fullest volume. A group of youngsters, dressed in eye-catching attire and dancing to popular numbers did manage to attract quite a few eyeballs for the Congress camp.The LDF campaign seemed less colourful, with the supporters - mostly youngsters and adolescents- using drums and clarinets to drive home the message. Smearing red colour on each other, the LDF workers danced to the tunes of the drumbeats while others were seen perched atop campaign vehicles, waving red flags.
A few SDPI workers were also seen waving their party flags and dancing to the tunes blaring out from their campaign vehicles. However, a strong posse of policemen ensured that they were kept at a safe distance from the LDF supporters nearby.
The campaign finale also created its share of problems with office goers and college students virtually held hostage on the streets, on their way back home. Traffic was regulated in most of the roads leading to the junction and traffic at the Kowdiar-Vazhayila stretch crawled at a snail’s pace. However, the campaign came to a close at sharp 6 pm without any untoward incidents. In neighbouring Attingal constituency, hundreds of workers of various political parties participated in the campaign finale, which was held in Attingal junction. While A Sampath of the CPM, Bindu Krishna of the Congress and S Girija Kumari of the BJP were present to cheer their supporters, SDPI’s K Manoj Kumar and Priya Sunil of the Welfare Party of India also turned up to witness the campaign finale.