Kerala by-election results: Loss of face for MK Stalin as ruling AIADMK secures comfortable victory

Thiruvananthapuram/Chennai: The Congress-led UDF's Shanimol Usman wrested the Aroor seat from the CPI (M), reportedly after nearly six decades, by defeating Manu C Pulikkal in the recently held by-elections. The results for the election were declared on Thursday.

Shanimol won by a margin of 2,079 votes.

In the five seats for which by-elections were held UDF won three, while the ruling LDF won two.

Ernakulam, a safe seat for the Congress was won by the party's TJ Vinod. The margin of victory was 3,750 votes.

In Manjeshwaram, UDF candidate MC Kamaruddin of the IUML won by 7,923 votes.

Thiruvananthapuram mayor and CPI (M) candidate for Vattiyoorkaavu,VK Prashanth wrested the seat from the Congress. He won by a margin of over 14,000 votes.
KU Jenish Kumar of CPI (M) won the Konni seat by a margin of 9953 votes.

The CPI (M) has secured a vote share of 31.7 per cent in the five assembly seats, followed by Congress which secured 29.80 per cent while the BJP managed to secure 23 per cent votes.

The by-elections to Ernakulam, Aroor, Konni and Vattiyoorkavu were necessitated when the sitting MLAs were elected to the Lok Sabha in the recent parliamentary elections. Manjeshwaram seat fell vacant after the death of the sitting legislator last year.

In Tamil Nadu, DMK's MK Stalin failed to impress again in electoral politics as the ruling AIADMK won the Vikravandi and Nanguneri seats. While AIADMK candidate MR Muthamizhselvan won by a comfortable margin from Vikravandi, the party's Reddiarpatti V Narayanan wrested the Nanguneri seat from the Congress by winning by a margin of 32,000 votes.

With this victory the AIADMK's strength in the 234 member assembly has gone up to 124. The DMK's strength is 100 and the Congress party's only seven.

'Truth prevailed,' said Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy on by-poll victory. Deputy CM O Panneerselvam said the by-election results have revealed that the people of Tamil Nadu have reposed their faith in the ruling AIADMK. The victory is because of the AIADMK government's achievements, he said.

The visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mamallapuram helped AIADMK win the by-poll, BJP leader L Ganesan claimed.

In Puducherry, Congress candidate A John Kumar won the Kamaraj Nagar by-election by a margin of 7,170 votes against his rival S Bhuvaneswaran of All India N R Congress.