Bharat Jodo Team Reaches Puthuppally To Bolster Chandy Oommen's Candidacy

A group of twelve dedicated Congress members, who completed the extensive Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi, have reached Puthuppally with a specific goal to support UDF candidate Chandy Oommen, son of late Congress leader and former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in the ongoing campaign. Mahila Congress state secretary Sheeba Ramachandran, one of the participants in the Bharat Jodo team, stated that the volunteers will be stationed in the constituency for the duration of the campaign and will be visiting households to spread the message of the UDF.

Ramachandran said that the team's objective is to amplify the victory margin of the United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate in the upcoming bypoll. She further told Manorama News that the team will highlight the failures of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government and to mobilise support for the UDF candidate. She said that the electorate is unhappy with the LDF government's perceived corruption and inefficiency, and that the bypoll is an opportunity for the people to express their protest.

The electorate's discontent with the LDF government's perceived corruption and inefficiency is anticipated to reverberate in the election, she added. "The larger the margin, the more pronounced the people's protest message against LDF governance will be," Ramachandran asserted.

The members of the Bharat Jodo team who have arrived in Puthuppally include Venugopalan P V, Yusuf Shaji, Varun Alapatt, Aneesh Katakkada, Vijesh, Fathima Thirthala from Palakkad, Shibin Mathen, K T Benny, Vivek Bhatkar from Rajasthan, and Arif Muhammed from Coimbatore. They undertook an arduous 4,080 km journey from Kanyakumari to Kashmir over 150 days, spanning from September 7, 2022, to January 30, 2023.

Within the Congress party, these individuals have been given leadership roles. Sheeba Ramachandran revealed that she is supervising activities for the Rajasthan assembly election, having previously fulfilled similar roles during the Karnataka election and the Thrikkakara by-election. Since the announcement of the by-election in Puthuppally, she has been actively engaged. "We formed teams from the Mahila Congress and have been visiting households. Our efforts extend beyond seeking votes - we're also explaining the policies of the state and central governments," she stated.

A sympathy wave has emerged in the constituency due to the passing of Oommen Chandy, according to her. "However, homemakers are also openly critical of the government's policies," she noted.

Fathima Thirthala, who is also a State Secretary of the Mahila Congress, emphasized that they were successful in conveying to the public the alleged corruption of the LDF government. She claimed, "Even the women in families of CPM supporters agreed to vote for Chandy Oommen."

Both women highlighted that they embarked on the Bharat Jodo Yatra with the aspiration of revitalizing the Congress party. "I left behind my elderly mother and teenage daughter to join the Yatra. I endured challenges, from broken toenails to fever, yet I never took a day of rest. I persisted through medication and walking," recounted Sheeba Ramachandran. She added, "Our enthusiasm was driven by our dream to rejuvenate the Congress party."

The byelection to the Puthuppally assembly constituency in Kottayam will be held on September 5. The seat fell vacant after the death of sitting MLA and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, who represented the constituency for 53 years, on July 18.

Puthuppally has 175,605 voters, encompassing 89,897 women, 85,705 men, and three individuals identifying as third-gender voters. Among these, 6,376 voters are aged over 80. The electorate includes 1,765 individuals classified under the persons with disabilities (PWD) category, along with 181 overseas electors. Additionally, the tally includes 138 service voters.