The Left was leading over the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by 416 votes, as counting for the Neyattinkara by-election began here Friday. The Congress was trailing behind in third position.
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) candidate F. Lawerence was leading at the end of the first round counting, according to the Election Commission website."Athiyanoor local body is being counted first. The council has always been a traditional support base of the CPI-M. It is not surprising," said State Planning Board member and senior UDF (United Democratic Front) leader C.P. John.
What raised eyebrows was when BJP made a steady start. The party's candidate was former union minister O. Rajagopal.
The Congress candidate R. Selvaraj, was a former CPI-M legislator. He had resigned from the party to join Congress.
Norwegian
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