Malappuram: With only a week left for the public campaign for the by-election, top leaders of the three major fronts in the fray are all set to flock the Vengara constituency in the coming days, heating up the final phase of electioneering. They include state and Union ministers besides top leaders of the Congress, IUML, CPM and BJP. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will arrive on Sunday to campaign for LDF candidate P.P. Basheer and address three rallies in A.R. Nagar, Parappur and Othukkungal panchayats. Senior CPM leader V.S. Achuthanandan will take part in a rally at Vengara on Sunday while state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan will camp in the constituency for four days primarily managing the organisational affairs at the ground level.
Ministers and party MLAs will also attend various campaign programmes across six panchayats, said P.P. Vasudevan, the party's district secretary. Congress leaders, former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala, are also set to launch a full-time campaign on Tuesday which will extend to a few days. KPCC president M.M. Hasan will also come. Young MLAs of Congress have already been appointed to supervise the UDF activities across the panchayats in the constituency.
The UDF is also contemplating to bring senior leader A.K. Antony for the campaign. IUML general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty MP’s roadshow will begin on Tuesday for the UDF candidate his party has fielded, K.N.A. Khader. The BJP-led NDA is all set to capitalise on the party’s Janaraksha Yatra led by its president Kummanam Rajasekharan, which will reach here on Sunday.
According to BJP election managers, two Union ministers would also accompany him during the Yatra in Malappuram. BJP national spokesperson Sayed Shahnawaz Husain will also be here for the NDA campaign. They said BJDS state president Tushar Vellappally would also campaign for the BJP candidate, though his father and the party's mentor Vellappally Nateshan had predicted a severe setback.
