Poll results: The match report
By Asha P Nair
28th October 2010 01:39 AM
It was only 8 am, but the premises of the Swathi Thirunal College of Music gave us another impression. It looked as if everyone else in the world was awake and very much there, only we had overslept.
The mob, hundreds of party workers, were already stationed in front of the gate, over the walls of Gandhi Bhavan nearby and in front of the Divisional Office adjacent to it. The little gate on the side opened to candidates and agents as and when the loudspeaker called for them. Other times, the iron bars prevented the enthusiasm of activists from entering the campus.
Inside, the tension was too visible. Candidates who had smiles fixed to their lips, as if forcefully, nodded and gestured, but talked less. The counting booths, four of them, were surrounded by security guards. And then the first result was announced. LDF has won Punnaikkamugal. A loud roar erupted outside. ‘’Oh, the LDF has begun,’’ was the buzz around. Result of Beemapally East, which came in next, added to the expectations. That Beemapally Rasheed, a strong UDF candidate, had bowed out, was enough encouragement to the Left.
The first blow to the LDF came in a few minutes when Kazhakkoottam went to the UDF kitty. And then continuously, two more seats - Kunnukuzhy and Kulathur- were won by the UDF. Suddenly, the ambience changed, the LDF candidates looked unsure of themselves and the UDF candidates came alive. As the clock ticked away and the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) proved slow-workers, candidates were pushed to anxiety. One by one, LDF’s big names were voted out. K C Vikraman, Vazhuthacaud Narendran, Ayesha Baker... Traditional Left wards changed hands. Thycaud, Kalady, Estate, Sasthamangalam, Sreekanteswaram... It was as if Politics suddenly became the Omnipresent and the devotees were clueless as to His intentions.
‘’Has poet Ayyappan’s death got anything to do with the upsets?” one of the party worker was in doubt.
‘’It’s got to do with this lottery scam that they stirred up,’’ another guy found out.
Shashi Tharoor had argued convincingly enough to change the minds of a lot of voters, another assumption came up.
‘’Thiruvananthapuram has always acted foolishly,’’ another commented.
‘’All that rice for Rs 2 and all those houses built for the poor and parks for middle-class did nothing good,’’ a Corporation employee expressed pity.
Who will own up the responsibility, Pinarayi or VS, many thought aloud. But nobody mentioned Jayan Babu. Wonder why?
By afternoon, when news came in that Kochi and Thrissur Corporations had already gone to the UDF and that contest was strong in the municipalities, the Left candidates were struggling to remain optimists.
The saffron flag with the symbol lotus could be spotted outside and talks steered to their good fortune. ‘’So, finally, they dumped the dirty work of voting for the UDF and voted for themselves,’’ a CPM candidate reasoned.
So, then who will be the Deputy Mayor,was the million-dollar question. For, a woman Mayor is no big deal.
If everyone shared the same opinion, then it was about the show of the EVMs. Ballot papers would have quickened the results, many felt. After a small break that came when officials and candidates could not contain their hunger, counting took a curious and stressful turn after 3 pm.
Only five wards were left and the LDF needed to win two to get a majority. Poojappura, the first of them, went to the UDF, that too registering a brutal majority. Maheswaran Nair, the winner there, seemed eager to hug anyone going close to him. Thankfully, nobody reminded him of the last time, when he was taken on shoulders by the the LDF workers after he won as a DIC candidate. But, like last time, he would be going to Leader Karunakaran first, he said.
And then, bringing a flood of relief to the LDF, its candidates won from Pangode and Trikanapuram. The Council was again LDF's, but this time in no big fashion. Two more to go, but Nemom favoured the UDF and Ponnumangalam, the last to be declared, went to the BJP. The red flags waved excitedly outside, but the LDF candidates appeared more relieved than happy.
asha.nair@expressbuzz.com
The mob, hundreds of party workers, were already stationed in front of the gate, over the walls of Gandhi Bhavan nearby and in front of the Divisional Office adjacent to it. The little gate on the side opened to candidates and agents as and when the loudspeaker called for them. Other times, the iron bars prevented the enthusiasm of activists from entering the campus.
Inside, the tension was too visible. Candidates who had smiles fixed to their lips, as if forcefully, nodded and gestured, but talked less. The counting booths, four of them, were surrounded by security guards. And then the first result was announced. LDF has won Punnaikkamugal. A loud roar erupted outside. ‘’Oh, the LDF has begun,’’ was the buzz around. Result of Beemapally East, which came in next, added to the expectations. That Beemapally Rasheed, a strong UDF candidate, had bowed out, was enough encouragement to the Left.
The first blow to the LDF came in a few minutes when Kazhakkoottam went to the UDF kitty. And then continuously, two more seats - Kunnukuzhy and Kulathur- were won by the UDF. Suddenly, the ambience changed, the LDF candidates looked unsure of themselves and the UDF candidates came alive. As the clock ticked away and the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) proved slow-workers, candidates were pushed to anxiety. One by one, LDF’s big names were voted out. K C Vikraman, Vazhuthacaud Narendran, Ayesha Baker... Traditional Left wards changed hands. Thycaud, Kalady, Estate, Sasthamangalam, Sreekanteswaram... It was as if Politics suddenly became the Omnipresent and the devotees were clueless as to His intentions.
‘’Has poet Ayyappan’s death got anything to do with the upsets?” one of the party worker was in doubt.
‘’It’s got to do with this lottery scam that they stirred up,’’ another guy found out.
Shashi Tharoor had argued convincingly enough to change the minds of a lot of voters, another assumption came up.
‘’Thiruvananthapuram has always acted foolishly,’’ another commented.
‘’All that rice for Rs 2 and all those houses built for the poor and parks for middle-class did nothing good,’’ a Corporation employee expressed pity.
Who will own up the responsibility, Pinarayi or VS, many thought aloud. But nobody mentioned Jayan Babu. Wonder why?
By afternoon, when news came in that Kochi and Thrissur Corporations had already gone to the UDF and that contest was strong in the municipalities, the Left candidates were struggling to remain optimists.
The saffron flag with the symbol lotus could be spotted outside and talks steered to their good fortune. ‘’So, finally, they dumped the dirty work of voting for the UDF and voted for themselves,’’ a CPM candidate reasoned.
So, then who will be the Deputy Mayor,was the million-dollar question. For, a woman Mayor is no big deal.
If everyone shared the same opinion, then it was about the show of the EVMs. Ballot papers would have quickened the results, many felt. After a small break that came when officials and candidates could not contain their hunger, counting took a curious and stressful turn after 3 pm.
Only five wards were left and the LDF needed to win two to get a majority. Poojappura, the first of them, went to the UDF, that too registering a brutal majority. Maheswaran Nair, the winner there, seemed eager to hug anyone going close to him. Thankfully, nobody reminded him of the last time, when he was taken on shoulders by the the LDF workers after he won as a DIC candidate. But, like last time, he would be going to Leader Karunakaran first, he said.
And then, bringing a flood of relief to the LDF, its candidates won from Pangode and Trikanapuram. The Council was again LDF's, but this time in no big fashion. Two more to go, but Nemom favoured the UDF and Ponnumangalam, the last to be declared, went to the BJP. The red flags waved excitedly outside, but the LDF candidates appeared more relieved than happy.
asha.nair@expressbuzz.com
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