Malabar votes in big numbers, sporadic violence in Kannur

Kozhikode/Kannur: Polling in the five districts in Malabar, which had witnessed intense political contests even in traditional Left strongholds, saw high turnout with voting remaining largely peaceful except for sporadic instances of violence reported in Kannur. Allegations of bogus voting and impersonation surfaced in Payyannur constituency, with the UDF raising complaints. Kozhikode emerged as the top district in the state with a turnout of 81.36%, according to latest Election Commission figures. In the district, where several Left bastions saw stiff contests, as many as 10 constituencies recorded polling above 80%. Kunnamangalam topped the list with 84.83%, followed by Beypore (83.77%), where PWD minister P A Mohamed Riyas contested.Long queues were visible outside polling booths from early morning. Apart from closely fought contests, apprehensions among voters especially in Muslim-majority belts following the SIR exercise that they might be left out if they did not vote, also contributed to the surge in turnout. While UDF leaders attributed the increased polling percentage to strong anti-incumbency sentiment, CPM state secretary M V Govindan said LDF would benefit from the higher turnout. Significantly, Malappuram district registered a notable increase of nearly four percentage points, rising from 75.8% in 2021 to 79.82% this time. Eight of its 16 constituencies recorded polling above 80%, with Wandoor leading at 81.33%. Kannur, a traditional Left stronghold, recorded a turnout of 78.6%, with Mattannur registering the highest at 82.24% and Irikkur the lowest at 74.32%. The district witnessed several instances of violence in which four booth agents getting injured in alleged attack by CPM, including booth agent Rajesh M P at Malappatanam and Suresh Kanayi of Booth 61 of Payyannur. Also, two NDA booth agents at Taliparamba and Mattannur were injured in attacks, allegedly by CPM. The Priyadharshini Mandiram at Matttannur also came under attack.Meanwhile, LDF booth agent at Mayyil allegedly suffered stab injuries while returning after polling. P P Prakashan, 50, has been admitted to the AKG Hospital allegedly by a Congress activist, though the party denied the charge. UDF supported independent candidate V Kunhikrishnan alleged that there had been widespread bogus voting in areas like Kandoth and Karammal booths and that he would lodge a complaint with EC. Kasaragod also saw poll percentage increasing from 76.6 in 2021 to 79.11 with Manjeshwaram recording the highest percentage of 81.04.Police booked B M Jamal, chief election agent of Uduma UDF candidate K Neelakandan, under Section 170 of the BNS for creating tension at a polling booth at Bekal Islamia LP School after he entered the booth wearing smart glasses equipped with a camera and Bluetooth. In Thrikkaripur, UDF candidate Sandeep Warrier alleged fake voting in Puthulode booth, claiming that the vote of a person currently abroad had been cast and that his polling agent was manhandled when he objected.Wayanad recorded a poll percentage of 78.81. A polling official was removed from election duty for allegedly asking voters inside the polling booth to vote for the the Lotus symbol. In Kuttiyadi, Poomullakandy Zeenath, an expat voter in booth 47 said when she came to vote, she was told that her vote has been cast by postal vote. The polling extended to late in the night in many booths across Malabar allegedly due to slow pace of polling and time lost due to EVM glitches.