Oommen Chandy offers prayers at Puthuppally Church as counting of votes underway in Kerala

Congress leader and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Sunday offered prayers at Puthuppally Church in Kottayam as counting of votes for the 140 seats in Kerala is underway.

Congress leader and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Sunday offered prayers at Puthuppally Church in Kottayam as counting of votes for the 140 seats in Kerala is underway. Chandy is also the party's candidate from Puthuppally Assembly constituency in the state.

Leaders of both Left Democratic Front (LDF) and United Democratic Front (UDF) have expressed confidence of victory in the state polls. The exit polls had indicated that the ruling LDF will create history by getting re-elected but leaders of Congress-led UDF had rejected these surveys and expressed confidence of their alliance coming to power in the southern state. LDF leaders have said that the exit polls reflect the acceptability of the ruling alliance among people. Kerala has been seeing LDF and UDF alternatively coming to power for nearly four decades. If the LDF bunks the trend under leadership of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, it will be scripting history.

LDF includes CPI(M), CPI, Kerala Congress(M) and some other smaller parties whereas UDF comprises Congress, Indian Union Muslim League, Kerala Congress, Revolutionary Socialist Party and other smaller parties. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has Bharath Dharma Jana Sena as its ally. Vijayan has steered the state through several challenges in the past five years including COVID-19.

If exit polls hold true, the 76-year-old CPI-M leader could become only the third Chief Minister in Kerala's history to be re-elected and the first to continue in office after completing a full term. Vijayan is contesting from Dharmadam, BJP state president K Surendran from Manjeshwar and Konni, Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala from Haripad and Oommen Chandy from Puthuppally. (ANI)

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