Nilambur, June 16
With just a day left for public campaigning in the Nilambur assembly by-election to end, the contest has reached a feverish pitch. All four candidates, along with their parties' star campaigners, are making a final push to woo voters ahead of polling on June 19.
While the main battle is between Congress candidate Aryadan Shoukath and CPI(M)’s former legislator M. Swaraj, the outcome could well hinge on how many votes are garnered by P.V. Anvar -- the two-time Independent legislator who vacated the seat in January following a fallout with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan -- and BJP candidate Mohan George.
As is typical in electoral contests, every major player is claiming victory. BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has declared that George is on course to win, despite the party securing only 8,595 votes in the constituency in 2021.
Anvar, meanwhile, has drawn star power with former Indian cricketer and Trinamool Congress MP Yusuf Pathan campaigning for him.
“I’m here for Anvar’s campaign now, and I’ll be back for his victory celebration -- he’s going to be the man of the match in Nilambur,” said Pathan during a whirlwind tour of the constituency.