Delhi: The Central Election Commission has issued instructions for by-election preparations. The Chief Electoral Officer has been instructed to resolve the complaints and publish the final voter list on May 5. The Election Commission has started steps to conduct by-elections in 6 places in the country, including Nilambur. With this, doubts are being raised whether the Nilambur by-election will be by mail.
The date for the by-election is likely to be announced by next week. Preparations have begun in the constituency with the Congress giving the election responsibility to AP Anilkumar and CPM M Swaraj. There are indications that either VS Joy or Aryadan Shoukat will be the candidate from the Congress. While the CPM is considering TK Hamsa or some local leaders, there is also a possibility of a last-minute surprise candidate.
Whoever contests in Nilambur, which PV Anwar has vacated, Anwar will be the decisive factor. Although Anwar has announced that he will support VS Joy, the Congress has not rejected Aryan Shoukat so far. Anwar’s warning is in the air that he will not hesitate to run for the candidate. In any case, the Congress has warned that the decision to hand over the charge to KC Venugopal’s confidant AP Anilkumar will be the final decision of the high command.
Meanwhile, the CPM is continuing its efforts to find a strong candidate in Nilambur. The name of TK Hamsa is also being considered, but the leaders are not interested in that experiment. They think that if there is a dispute in the Congress, they can remove Aryadan. But if that does not happen, the plan is to field someone like Sports Council President U Sharafali. If the party decides to contest on its own, the names of VM Shaukat, P Shabir and others are likely to come up. In any case, the CPM will make an announcement after the Congress decides on a candidate.
