THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a keen political move, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) has decided to keep aside caste equations and field a popular young face from Vattiyoorkavu in the coming assembly byelections. Thiruvananthapuram Mayor V K Prasanth is all set to be the CPM candidate from the constituency. The official announcement is expected on Thursday.
The CPM district secretariat which met here on Wednesday held a detailed discussion on his candidature, as the state leadership proposed his name. Senior CPM leader and LDF convener A Vijayaraghavan reported the state leadership’s decision in this regard before the district secretariat.
The party observed that instead of going by caste equations, going for a popular, young and familiar face in a constituency which falls within the city limits could prove to be beneficial. With the UDF yet to finalise its candidate, the Left is all set to be the first to launch poll campaign. The name of Prasanth has been in the air since the byelections were announced. The CPM hopes to cash in on the image of the young politician, who has done commendable relief operations during the flood last month. Though a couple of other names including that of Thiruvananthapuram district panchayat president V K Madhu were doing the rounds, the party-state leadership was keen on fielding Prasanth.