Left set for comeback in Kerala

Kannur, Kerala: The Left was poised to return to power in Kerala after five years in the opposition, exit polls after the third and final round of assembly elections predicted yesterday.

A.C. Nielsen said the Left Democratic Front (LDF) would end up with 99 seats in the 140-member Assembly, leaving the now ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) with just 40 seats a complete reversal of the 2001 outcome.

The one remaining seat would go to a smaller party, but Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has been desperate to open its account in the assembly, would still go without representation in the house.

The final exit poll prediction mirrors the findings of the pre-poll surveys that had forecast a sweep for the Left led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

Yesterday's third round of balloting involving 15 constituencies took place in Kannur and Kasaragod districts. The first two rounds were held on April 22 and on April 29, to 59 and 66 seats respectively.

Ignoring the exit poll results notwithstanding, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram immediately after the polling ended that he was confident of retaining power.

"Though I am not going to predict how many seats we will get, I will say that we have done well. I did not see any anti-incumbency wave," said Chandy.

But CPI-M state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said they were poised for a historic win.

"We will win more than 100 seats. The people in Kerala have been consistently voting against the UDF in all elections since 2003 and the same is to happen this time also," he said.

In Kannur the poll percentage touched 73 per cent while in Kasaragod it crossed 70 per cent. Close to 13,000 security personnel from Kerala and other states had been deployed in the two districts and 1,000 digital cameras were placed in polling booths.

Thiruvananthapuram: Many constituencies in Kannur and Kasaragod, the two districts of Kerala that went to the polls today, are known fortresses of the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF), but senior LDF leaders said today that this time the victory of the Left front would be out of the ordinary and "historic".

Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said, "The United Democratic Front will lose many of its traditional citadels. Many UDF leaders even from districts which have traditionally favoured the UDF will not return to the legislative assembly." Opposition deputy leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who is contesting from Thalassery, said the LDF would score a "historic victory" this time.

By Akhel Mathew, Correspondent

Factfile

Small state in southwest Kerala is a small state tucked away in the southwest corner of India.

It represents only 1.18 per cent of the total area of India but 3.43 per cent of the population of the country.

Area: 38,863 sq km

Population: 31.8 million

Languages: Malayalam, Hindi, English

Capital: Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum)

Literacy Rate (2001): 90.92%

About Kerala Crops: Kerala is a major producer of coconut, rubber, pepper, cardamom, ginger, cocoa, cashew, coffee, and tea. Tree spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves etc., are also cultivated. Rice and tapioca are important food crops.

www.keralarajasthanindia.com