Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 7 (IANS) Campaigning for the first phase of Kerala’s high-stakes local body elections will draw to a close on Sunday evening, setting the stage for polling in seven districts on December 9.

Widely seen as a political barometer ahead of next year’s Assembly elections, the two-phase civic polls have witnessed an intense, high-voltage campaign across the state.

State Election Commissioner A. Shajahan has directed all political parties to ensure that their final day of campaigning does not obstruct public movement or cause inconvenience to commuters.

In several districts, the police have imposed restrictions to regulate crowd sizes, procession routes and the use of loudspeakers as part of heightened security arrangements for the campaign finale.

The first phase of voting will be held on Tuesday in the southern districts of Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki and Ernakulam.

The remaining seven districts — Thrissur, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Kannur, Wayanad and Kasaragod — will go to the polls on December 11.

Counting of votes for all 1,199 local bodies across Kerala will take place on December 13.

According to official figures, as many as 1.32 crore voters will decide the political fortunes of 75,632 candidates contesting from 23,576 wards in village panchayats, block panchayats, district panchayats, municipalities and corporations across the state.

With just a day left for the first round of polling, all three major political fronts — the CPM-led LDF, the Congress-led UDF and the BJP-led NDA — have expressed confidence of securing a majority across Kerala’s three-tier local governance system.

The ruling CPI(M)-led LDF pitched its campaign on the state government’s welfare schemes and development initiatives, while the Congress-led UDF centred its attack on allegations of corruption, misgovernance and what it termed as the Left government’s financial extravagance.

The BJP focused its outreach on promises of local-level development, infrastructure upgrades and its ability to secure greater Central assistance for civic bodies.

However, the campaign was not without controversy.

The LDF faced political embarrassment following developments in the gold theft case at the Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple, which led to the arrest of senior CPI(M) leader and former Travancore Devaswom Board President A. Padmakumar.

The UDF, on the other hand, was rocked by allegations of rape and forced abortion against Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, who was subsequently expelled from the Congress as the election drew closer.

Internal disputes and local-level organisational issues also troubled the BJP in a few constituencies.

As campaigning ends on Sunday, heightened security and tight enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct are expected to ensure peaceful polling on Tuesday.

–IANS

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