CPI(M) led ruling LDF retains Chengannur seat
1 Jun 2018 4:11 AM IST
Chengannur (Ker): Kerala's ruling CPI(M)-led LDF's Saji Cheriyan on Thursday won the Chengannur Assembly bypoll by a huge margin of 20,956 votes over his nearest Congress rival, officials said.
According to the Chief Electoral Office, Cheriyan polled 67,303 votes while the Congress-led UDF candidate D Vijaykumar got 46,347
votes and BJP's P S Sreedharan Pillai came third with 35,270 votes.
Saji Cheriyan, CPI(M)'s Alappuzha district secretary, had maintained a steady lead from the beginning, and emerged victorious in a hard fought triangular contest between the three fronts-- LDF, UDF and NDA.
The victory margin of Cheriyan this time was more impressive than in 2016, when the LDF had won by a margin of only 7,983 votes.
It was in 1987, that the LDF candidate had got 15,703 votes.
A total of 76.25 per cent of the 1,99,340 electorate had exercised their franchise in the constituency in the by-poll held on May 28.
The by-election was necessitated following the death of sitting MLA K K Ramachandran Nair (CPI-M) in January this year due to illness.
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