KOTTAYAM: Taking an early advantage in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, the Kerala Congress(M) declared sitting MP Thomas Chazhikadan as the LDF candidate for Kottayam constituency. KC(M) chairman Jose K Mani announced the candidate after the party state secretariat and state committee meetings held in Kottayam on Monday.
Notably, KC(M) has become the first political party in the state to name its candidate for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The decision comes just two days after the conclusion of seat-sharing talks within the LDF. Jose emphasized that the party’s highest decision-making body, the steering committee, unanimously agreed to give Chazhikadan one more opportunity. “Extensive discussions were held at various levels of party committees in the Kottayam constituency, as well as within the steering committee, before finalising the candidate. Only one name came up in the discussions held in Monday’s steering committee,” Jose said.
Jose emphasized that Chazhikadan’s track record of bringing development projects to Kottayam will work in his favour during the upcoming contest. “In the previous election, he was chosen as the candidate by K M Mani, and he has proven himself by becoming the top-performing MP in Kerala in terms of utilising funds for the constituency. Since the entry of KC(M) into the LDF, the coalition has performed well in local body elections and retained power in the assembly election. We will continue the same winning streak,” he said.
Chazhikadan expressed his commitment to fulfilling the mission entrusted to him by the party. “This is my eighth election, and I approach it with the confidence that I have always successfully executed my responsibilities whenever I have been elected,” he said.
Chazhikadan, a chartered account by profession, entered into electoral politics following the untimely demise of his brother Babu Chazhikadan during the assembly election campaign in 1991.