Kerala - Kochi   

Candidates do post-poll analyses, confident of victory

Staff Reporter

It was a day of prayers, meeting friends and attending functions for most of them

MANDATE IN SAFE CUSTODY: A policeman, on Sunday, stands guard to a classroom at Ernakulam Maharaja's College where electronic voting machines used for Assembly polls on Saturday are stored. — Photo: H. Vibhu

KOCHI: On Sunday, a day after the second phase of Assembly elections, most candidates in the city spent their time praying, making post-poll assessments and meeting friends and party workers. Some of them also attended weddings. While the Congress candidates, K.V. Thomas and Dominic Presentation, of Ernakulam and Palluruthy constituencies, respectively, began the day by offering prayers at churches, their Communist Party of India (Marxist) rivals, M.M. Lawrence and C.M. Dinesh Mani, met friends and party workers and paid homage to a party comrade in west Kochi who died on Sunday.

Prof. Thomas, accompanied by his wife, Sherly, participated in morning prayers at St. Francis Cathedral.

He, later, took part in the first communion of the child of a Congress worker. He also visited two houses at Vaduthala and Kaloor where deaths occurred and offered condolences.

Happy over turnout

The increased voting percentage in the Ernakulam constituency has made the United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate a happy man. "The seven per cent increase in voter turnout compared with that in the previous elections and the fall in voting percentage in a few booths, such as Panambukaad, where the Left parties usually lead, are positive indications," Prof. Thomas said.

"One of the special features of this election was that there were no instances of bogus voting owing to strict enforcement of election rules and use of voters' list with photos of voters. These factors will help the UDF in posting an impressive win with an increased margin in the constituency," he said.

He is hoping to get a margin of 15,000 votes this time. In the previous elections in 2001, his margin was around 12,000 votes.

However, Mr. Lawrence refused to buy the theory that increased voting would always favour the UDF. This time, the numbers of voters had fallen and, hence, the increased voting percentage was insignificant, he said.

The party workers and friends who called on Mr. Lawrence in the morning exuded confidence that the Left Democratic Front (LDF) would win the elections. "The feedback that I got from the field is also the same," Mr. Lawrence said.

After making a post-poll analysis, Mr. Presentation sounded confident, and claimed that he would get a margin of nearly 3,000 votes.

The worst performance of the Congress in the constituency was when M.O. John contested the Ernakulam Lok Sabha byelection as the UDF candidate. All the factors — the Karunarakan faction and a section of Muslim voters — were against the UDF at that time. Even in that election, Mr. John secured a margin of 3,000 votes in the segment, he said.

However, this time, the situation had improved tremendously and the party workers were of the view that the UDF would retain the seat with an improved margin, Mr. Presentation said.

Mr. Mani, his LDF rival, hopes that the "pro-LDF wave that is sweeping the State" and the "resentment against the local MLA" will lead to his victory. The final voting figure in the constituency is 70.2 per cent. Going by the trend, the LDF will get a minimum margin of 5,000 votes in Palluruthy, he said.

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