UDF's Chandy Oommen wins Puthupally bypoll

Kottayam: Dealing a crushing blow to Kerala's ruling LDF, Congress candidate Chandy Oommen on Friday retained for the party-led UDF, the Puthuppally assembly seat, which his father and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy held for over half-a-century.

Chandy Oommen trounced his main rival Jaick C Thomas of CPI(M) by a huge and historic margin in the bypoll.

The 37-year-old Oommen defeated Thomas by a margin of 37,719 votes in the bypoll battle that saw a nearly month-long vigorous campaigning by leaders of the Congress, CPI(M), and BJP for their respective party candidates.

While Oommen gathered 80,144 votes, Thomas could get only 42,425 votes. Though the BJP leadership exuded confidence of a good show in the politically significant bypoll, the saffron party could not feature prominently in the contest.

BJP candidate Lijin Lal finished a distant third, falling behind the LDF contestant by gathering a total of 6,558 votes. Analysts agreed that the outcome was on expected lines, with the sympathy generated by the demise of his hugely popular father playing out to the advantage of Chandy Oommen.

The contest in the politically hyperactive constituency in Kottayam district assumed added significance as it came just months before the Lok Sabha elections.

Maintaining a clear lead right from the start, Oommen went on to clock one of the state's highest victory margins. CPI (M) nominee Thomas failed to hold ground even in panchayats controlled by the LDF in the predominantly rural segment.

Oommen Chandy who represented Puthuppally constituency without a break since 1971 died on July 18, necessitating the bypoll. When an elated Congress described the exciting victory as a clear indication of "anti-incumbency" prevailing in the southern state, the ruling CPI(M) dubbed it a "sympathy wave" following the demise of Oommen Chandy.

This is the third consecutive defeat for Thomas in the assembly polls in Puthuppally constituency.

A Central committee member of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), 33-year-old Thomas has a history of shocking the Congress leadership by reducing Oommen Chandy's victory margin to a slender 9,044 votes in the 2021 assembly polls. (PTI)