United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate K.N.A. Khader has emerged victorious in the Vengara Assembly byelection held on Wednesday (October 11). He defeated nearest rival P.P. Basheer of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) by a margin of 23,310 votes when the results were announced today (Sunday).
When Mr. Khader secured 65,227 votes, Mr. Basheer got 41,917 votes. Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) candidate K.C. Naseer secured the third position by polling 8,648 votes. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was pushed to the fourth place in spite of fielding its most popular candidate in the district, K. Janachandran. He secured 5,728 votes.
UDF supporters began celebrations soon after counting of votes started at P.S.M.O. College, Tirurangadi, at 8 a.m. today (Sunday). Counting closed by 10.15 a.m. giving chances for both UDF and LDF to make claims about their performance.
When the UDF described its victory as a solid one, the LDF said that it made a great stride in Vengara by reducing the victory margin of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) candidate. LDF leaders described Vengara result as political failure of the UDF.
In the 2016 Assembly election, IUML’s national general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty had defeated Mr. Basheer by 38,057 votes. The UDF lead fell to 23,310 votes in the byelection. Mr. Kunhalikutty said Mr. Khader’s lead was the biggest in recent memory for any candidate in an Assembly byelection.
IUML State president Sayed Hyderali Shihab Thangal said that Mr. Kunhalikutty’s margin of 38,057 votes last year was a result of his personal influence in Vengara.
Mr. Kunhalikutty relinquished his Assembly seat after he was elected to Lok Sabha from Malappuram on April 12, paving the way for the October 11 byelection in Vengara.
