Thiruvananthapuram | Campaigning for the April 9 Kerala Assembly polls will come to an end on Tuesday evening as the three political alliances, led by ruling CPI(M), Congress, and BJP, made last-ditch efforts to woo a majority of support from among the 2.71 crore voters in the state.
The Election Commission has outlined strict restrictions to be followed during the 48-hour silence period after campaigning comes to an end at 6 pm.
The measures, issued to ensure free and fair elections, will come into effect 48 hours prior to the close of polling, with the aim of enabling voters to exercise their franchise without fear or influence, Kerala Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dr Rathan U Kelkar said a day ago.
Organising or attending public meetings, processions, rallies, musical events, theatrical performances and other forms of entertainment which can influence voters have been prohibited, a statement issued by the CEO has said.
Further, political advertisements in newspapers on April 8 and 9 will require prior approval from the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC), the EC has said.
The election will decide the fate of 890 candidates contesting for 140 seats, following a campaign marked by serious accusations of corruption, financial mismanagement and "deals" with the BJP by the UDF and LDF against each other. Even BJP accused LDF and UDF of having a secret alliance.
On Tuesday, Congress MLA from Muvattupuzha, Mathew Kuzhalnadan came out with a new allegation, accusing the ruling front of causing the 2018 floods for benefitting a soil mining company by not opening in time spillways of an important dam in Alappuzha.
He alleged that similar irregularities in delayed opening of spillways occurred in connection with other dams in the state.
There was no immediate reaction from the government to this allegation.
The LDF has accused the Congress of mismanagement of funds collected by the Congress for housing landslide victims in Wayanad.
The massive landslides in 2024 claimed more than 200 lives.
The row over relief funds for housing landslide-hit residents of Wayanad has emerged as a major poll issue, putting the Congress on the defensive.
The CPI(M) has questioned the collection and use of funds, while the Congress's response, presented by its state chief, Sunny Joseph, has drawn criticism and further fuelled the controversy.
The CPI(M)-led LDF has also released its progress report in Kannur, with Vijayan claiming that around 97 per cent of the promises made in 2021 had been fulfilled.
