THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The 88-km-long Vamanapuram river which acted as the lifeline of the constituency does not even remotely resemble the one it used to be. The banks lie exposed, while the water flow has reduced.In several areas the river has been limited to the status of an overflowing brook. Summer has been unkind to life all around. Womenfolk swarmed the bathing ghats all along the river in the afternoons with big loads of clothes to be washed as the water level in the wells has gone down drastically. Shops that felt the Covid pinch are yet to regain lost sales, while wayside hawkers are bogged down by the scorching sun that kept the public indoors.
Though the pandemic-induced hebetude still prevails in day-to-day affairs, the high-octane election campaign and heated political arguments have oozed a degree of anxiety and buzz into the mundane lives of the lesser mortals.Less than a kilometre away from the river, sitting MLA D K Murali of the CPM was busy delivering speech to a small crowd, mostly comprising party and trade union workers. It was the inauguration of his vehicle campaign and he appeared upbeat about his prospects. Defending his 2016 win over T Sarat Chandra Prasad, Murali is facing Congress’ Anad Jayan, whose candidacy has seemingly given the UDF some hopes.
On records, Vamanapuram has been a red fort that the UDF failed to breach barring two occasions. In 1965 and 1970, M Kunjukrishna Pillai of the Congress had the last laugh. Literally that was the last time UDF laughed here. Thereafter it has been the LDF all the way for the last 45 years.Murali said the LDF’s winning trend will continue unhampered. “Pinarayi Vijayan-led government has handheld Kerala during the crisis period. The constituency has also witnessed several development projects during my tenure. The LDF will surely win the seat and the state,” he said. “We have started an ITI and UIT in the constituency and several other development works including school renovation and bridges have been completed. Our next project is to construct a flyover in Venjaramoodu once we are back in office,” he said.
Murali’s confidence stems partially from the fact that the CPM has got a robust party mechanism in place in the constituency. In 2016 assembly polls the LDF polled 46.56 per cent votes, while in the recent local body elections it won 14 out of 15 divisions in Vamanapuram block panchayat and all three divisions in Nedumangad block panchayat, which fall in Vamanapuram constituency limit.But Anad Jayan felt otherwise. “The public have had enough of the CPM. Most of the voters that I had interacted with, said I will win. Vamanapuram won’t be an impregnable fort for UDF from now on,” he said. Jayan said the constituency has seen little development under CPM MLAs. “There is no government college or civil stations in the constituency. The road block in Venjaramoodu is inconveniencing public. These would be my primary areas, if elected.”
What kept the UDF hopes high this time is that Adoor Prakash in the Lok Sabha polls had secured about 10,000 vote lead in the constituency. Also, Jayan has good personal contacts unlike previous UDF candidates, which they felt would convert into votes.Meanwhile, NDA-BDJS’ Thazhava Sahadevan has been trying to project the need for voting BJP to power in the state. His campaign took potshots at the LDF and UDF for “neglecting” the needs of the constituency. “The constituency has a rich tourism potential. Industries can also be set up here as it has adequate land and raw materials. But both the fronts have overlooked these aspects and have done a big disservice to the people,” he said.
Though the Sabarimala and Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) agitations have hogged the limelight in the run up to the assembly polls, these topics are only selectively being used by the two fronts in the constituency during their campaigns. On the other hand, NDA, and SDPI which eyes Muslim votes and has presence in several pockets, have viciously used the topics in their campaigns.
Twin murder not a topic of discussion
The murders of two DYFI workers in Thempamoodu have not been widely used by both the fronts. The CPM had alleged that the murderers were Congress workers, but the matter has not been keenly used by the party during its campaigns.