Congress declares 22 more candidates for Kochi Corporation; withholds announcement in two wards as ‘surprise’

The Congress on Thursday released its final list of 22 candidates for the Kochi Corporation elections, withholding announcements for two wards — Cheralayi and Ravipuram.

Announcing the list, District Congress Committee (DCC) president Muhammed Shiyas described the decision to leave out just two wards out of the 64 that the party is contesting as a “surprise.” However, the names of BJP dissident and six-time councillor Shyamala S. Prabhu and former Congress Mayor Soumini Jain have been circulating for Cheralayi and Ravipuram wards respectively. He added that all 62 Congress candidates would be formally presented by Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan at the DCC office on Friday evening.

V.K. Minimol, a multiple-term councillor whose absence was conspicuous in the first list of 40 candidates released earlier this week, has now been fielded from the newly delimited Palarivattom, a general ward. The sitting councillor from Vaduthala West, Henry Austin, will contest again from the same ward.

Mr. Shiyas said that the decision to field four candidates above the mandatory 38 out of the 76 wards in the Corporation reflected the party’s commitment to increasing women’s participation in decision-making, especially since the Mayor’s post remains reserved for women. However, Malini Kurup, a three-time sitting councillor from the Girinagar ward, was excluded, much to her disappointment.

Originally, the Congress was expected to contest in 65 wards but has now allotted Konam, a general ward, to United Democratic Front (UDF) constituent Communist Marxist Party. When asked about the reported discontent within the Youth Congress over the perceived sidelining of its members in the candidate selection, Mr. Shiyas responded that a balanced mix of youth and experience had been chosen. “There are over 2,000 local body wards in Ernakulam district. Only after candidates are declared in all these wards can opinions be formed about youth representation, and not by looking at just the 76 wards in the Kochi Corporation,” he said.

Mr. Shiyas reiterated that the outgoing LDF governing committee merely completed the major projects initiated by previous UDF councils and failed to launch any significant infrastructure projects of its own using State government funds. He further claimed that the LDF was able to complete many of those projects only because it refrained from obstructing the work with unnecessary protests.