'Namesakes' cause trouble for UDF candidates in Palakkad, Chelakkara Assembly seats
Palakkad (Kerala) (PTI): The namesakes of prominent candidates contesting as independents have impacted election outcomes in the past and the strategy appears to be making a comeback in the assembly bypolls in Palakkad and Chelakkara constituencies.
As the three major political fronts -- LDF, UDF and NDA -- enter the second phase campaigns, three individuals with names resembling those of the Congress-led UDF candidates have entered the race as independents in the two assembly seats.
In the Palakkad constituency, where a triangular contest is unfolding, two independent candidates -- Rahul Manalazhi and Rahul R Vadakanthara -- are posing a challenge for the UDF, which has fielded Youth Congress state president Rahul Mamkootathil.
The grand old party alleged that these namesake candidates are backed by the CPI(M) and the BJP to confuse voters.
"Our initial inquiries indicate that one candidate is a CPI(M) worker while the other is supported by the BJP. However, such tactics would not impact the UDF's prospects in any way," a local Congress leader involved in Mamkootathil's campaign told PTI on Thursday.
In Chelakkara, the candidacy of 46-year-old Haridasan, who is reportedly a CITU worker, has sparked a row with the resemblance of his name to that of UDF candidate and former MP Ramya Haridas.
His photo had also appeared on a flex board placed in the constituency seeking votes for CPI(M) candidate U R Pradeep.
Following the row, the board was removed, according to Congress workers.
The CPI(M) has not officially commented on the matter.
With the withdrawal of nominations over on Wednesday (October 30), a total of 10 candidates, including Mamkootathil, LDF-independent Dr P Sarin, and BJP leader C Krishnakumar, are in the fray for the Palakkad seat.
The two namesakes of the Congress candidate -- 33-year-old Rahul Manalazhi and 28-year-old Rahul R Vadakanthara -- were allocated the coconut farm and air conditioner poll symbols, respectively.
The bypoll for the seat was necessitated by the election of sitting MLA and Congress leader Shafi Parambil to the Lok Sabha from the Vadakara constituency in the recent parliamentary polls.
The Congress-led UDF had faced a jolt after Sarin, who was the former digital media cell convener of the KPCC, quit the grand old party in protest against its decision to field Mamkootathil as the party candidate in the constituency.
He later joined the CPI(M)-led alliance, which made him an independent candidate and pitted him against Mamkootathil.
In Chelakkara, responding to the presence of her namesake, Haridas told reporters that the voters in the constituency know the UDF candidate and her symbol very well.
The by-election in Chelakkara has been necessitated by the vacating of the seat by CPI(M)'s K Radhakrishnan, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Alathur constituency, defeating sitting MP Ramya Haridas.
To retain the seat, CPI(M) has fielded former MLA U R Pradeep, while K Balakrishnan is the BJP candidate.
According to political experts, one of the biggest political defeats in Kerala's electoral history occurred in 2004 when former KPCC president V M Sudheeran lost in the Alappuzha Lok Sabha constituency.
He was defeated by CPM-backed independent candidate K S Manoj by just 1,009 votes, largely due to the presence of his namesake, V S Sudheeran, who garnered 8,332 votes, the experts say.
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Sambhal violence: Prohibitory orders issued, outsiders barred from entry till Nov 30
Sambhal (UP) (PTI): The district administration has imposed prohibitory orders and barred the entry of outsiders till November 30 after three men were killed and scores of others, including security and administration personnel, injured in a violence by protesters opposing a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque.
The order has been issued under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), said District Magistrate Rajender Pensiya late on Sunday.
"No outsiders, other social organisations or public representatives will enter the district border without the permission of the competent officer," said the order, which came into force with immediate effect.
Violation of the order will be punishable under Section 223 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the BNS.
Violence broke out in the district on Sunday as protesters opposing the survey of the Jama Masjid clashed with security personnel. The protesters torched vehicles and pelted the police with stones while the security personnel used tear gas and batons to disperse the mob.
Divisional Commissioner (Moradabad) Aunjaneya Kumar Singh said on Sunday, "Shots were fired by miscreants... the PRO of the superintendent of police suffered a gunshot to the leg, the circle officer was hit by pellets and 15 to 20 security personnel were injured in the violence."
A constable also suffered a serious head injury while the deputy collector fractured his leg.
"Three people, identified as Naeem, Bilal and Nauman, have been killed," Singh said.
Twenty-one people, including two women, have been detained and a probe has been launched, the official had said, adding that those accused in the violence would be booked under the stringent National Security Act (NSA).
District Magistrate Rajender Pensiya said, "The casualty count stands at three. The reason for the deaths of two is clear -- bullet wounds from countrymade pistols. The reason for the death of the third person is not clear but it will be after post-mortem."
Internet services were soon suspended in Sambhal tehsil for 24 hours and the district administration declared a holiday in all schools for Monday.
Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since November 19 when the Jama Masjid was first surveyed on the court's orders following a petition claiming that a Harihar temple had stood at the site.
Trouble started early on Sunday when a large group of people gathered near the mosque and started shouting slogans as the survey team began its work.
District officials said the survey could not be completed on Tuesday and was planned for Sunday to avoid interference with afternoon prayers.
Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, who is a petitioner in the case, had earlier said the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) ordered the constitution of an "advocate commission" to survey the mosque.
The court has said a report should be filed after conducting a videography and photography survey through the commission, he had said.
On Sunday, Jain urged the Archaeological Survey of India to take control of the "temple".
Gopal Sharma, a local lawyer for the Hindu side, had earlier claimed the temple that once stood at the site was demolished by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1529.
