Assembly polls: Puthuppally MLA Chandy Oommen casts vote, says "Keralam backing Congress"

Kottayam (Keralam) [India], April 9 : Puthuppally MLA Chandy Oommen on Thursday cast his vote in Kottayam as voting is underway for the Keralam assembly election, saying voters are backing Congress to seek justice for the alleged harassment of his father, Oommen Chandy.

Speaking to ANI, Oommen said, "When this government was in opposition, they carried out a witch hunt against my father. They are protecting the people who carried out the witch hunt. They did not take any action."

"The CBI also concluded that my father was not guilty. Entire Keralam is voting against this government. Today is the day when my father will get justice by giving the Congress government to the state," said the son of the former Chief Minister of Kerala, who passed away in 2023. He came dressed in a black outfit to vote and was accompanied by his mother and sister.

The Puthuppally seat holds significant political importance for the Congress, being a traditional stronghold of the party. Oommen, who won the 2023 Puthyppally bypoll, was necessitated after his father's death. is seeking to retain the constituency.

Polling began at 7 am across all 140 constituencies in Keralam, with voters turning out steadily to decide the fate of 883 candidates. According to the Election Commission of India, voter turnout stood at 33.28 per cent till 11 am.

Several prominent leaders in Keralam exercised their franchise as polling for the 2026 Assembly elections gained momentum across the state.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary MA Baby cast his vote in Thiruvananthapuram, while Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan voted at Pinarayi RC Amala Basic Upper Primary School in Kannur. Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan cast his vote at Kesari Government Arts and Science College in Ernakulam.

Among other voters, Keralam Congress president Sunny Joseph and MP Hibi Eden voted in Kannur and Kochi, respectively, while Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jebi Mather also participated.BJP leaders Anil K Antony and former Union Minister V Muraleedharan voted in Thiruvananthapuram. Actor-turned-politician and UDF candidate Ramesh Pisharody cast his vote in Palakkad. Senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan voted at Jawahar Nagar LP School in Thiruvananthapuram.

Keralam has over 2.69 crore registered voters, including 1.38 crore women and 1.31 crore men, along with 277 voters in the third gender category. Nearly 4.24 lakh first-time voters aged 18-19 are participating, while over 2 lakh voters are aged above 85.

To ensure smooth polling, authorities have set up 30,471 polling stations and deployed around 1.46 lakh trained personnel across the state. Security has also been heightened, with over 1,200 police teams active on the ground.

The election is being seen as a high-stakes contest between the incumbent LDF, which is seeking a third consecutive term, and the UDF, aiming for a comeback. Counting of votes is scheduled for May 4.

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