Thiruvananthapuram, March 15 Political parties in Kerala expressed confidence about the upcoming election battle shortly after the Election Commission announced the schedule for the Assembly polls on Sunday.
The election for 140 seats in the state will be held on April 9.
Both the CPI(M) and the CPI of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) were the first to announce their candidates, and many of them quickly launched their election campaigns.
LDF convenor T P Ramakrishnan said that seat sharing within the Front has been completed, and only a few seats remain to be finalized.
"Even though a consensus has been reached within the Front, each party is deciding on its own candidates. They will announce their candidates separately," he said.
Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, V D Satheesan, said the UDF will contest the elections as a united team.
"It is the UDF that will contest the election. We will win over 100 seats," he said.
Satheesan said there are no differences within the Congress or the UDF regarding seat sharing.
"The time for dividing seats based on internal groups is over. There are no groups that have been assigned seats in any district," he said.
He said that candidates are being selected based on their winnability.
When asked if the election schedule was announced earlier than expected, Satheesan said they had anticipated elections around April 18.
"The only issue is that new candidates will have limited time for campaigning. But this is not a major problem," he said.
He said that considering the summer heat, it is better that the elections are being held earlier.
"It is better to complete it in a shorter duration than letting it last longer. During our Puthuyuga rally, the temperature was around 34 degrees and it is expected to rise further in the coming days," he said.
AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said that the campaign period is very short as per the election schedule.
"There will be Holy Week in between, and the election is scheduled a few days before the Vishu festival. In practical terms, there are very limited days for campaigning," he said.
He said it is unusual for the Election Commission to schedule the polls in such a short duration.
Venugopal, however, said that the Congress is ready for the election.
"The UDF will strongly move forward to end the misgovernance of the LDF in Kerala. The people of Kerala are awaiting this," he said.
Venugopal added that the Congress candidate list would be finalized within one or two days.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that people in the state are fed up with the alleged misgovernance of the LDF and the UDF and are eager for a change.
"It is time for change. It is time to create a new Kerala. The NDA's slogan is that the unchanged will be changed and Kerala will develop," he said.
He said that NDA allies will visit every household and present their development plans to the people in the coming days.
"We will contest in all 140 seats. There are no differences within the NDA. We will soon announce the candidates," he said.
Former Congress leader Babu Divakaran from Adoor was announced as the Twenty20 candidate, an NDA ally, for the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections on Sunday.
Divakaran was welcomed into the party at an NDA convention held in Ernakulam district.
Twenty20 leader Sabu M Jacob announced that Divakaran will contest from the Kunnathunad constituency in Ernakulam district.
Jacob also said that Twenty20 will announce the remaining candidates soon.
Meanwhile, CPI(M) candidates, including ministers V Sivankutty and O R Kelu, carried out rallies and roadshows in their respective constituencies soon after the party announced its candidates.
"I know each and every house in the constituency. However, I will start with a door-to-door campaign, meeting voters directly. There is no doubt that Nemom will stand with the LDF," Sivankutty said.
Kelu held a rally in Mananthavady, Wayanad district.
"I hope to win again from here. I had won from here earlier when the UDF was predicted to have an upper hand. It will happen again this time," he said.
He said people have witnessed the state government's development activities and will support the LDF again.