Mambaram Divakaran to Contest Local Body Elections from Vengad Panchayat

Kannur: Veteran Congress leader Mambaram Divakaran is set to contest in the upcoming local body elections. He will represent the United Democratic Front (UDF) as a candidate from the 15th ward of Vengad Panchayat. This marks another significant electoral outing for Divakaran, who previously challenged Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as a UDF candidate in Dharmadam during the 2016 assembly elections.

Divakaran, a former executive member of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), had faced expulsion from the Congress party earlier. This action was reportedly a consequence of a dispute surrounding the elections for the Thalassery Indira Gandhi Cooperative Hospital. More recently, during last year’s Lok Sabha elections, he had announced his intention to contest as an independent candidate against K. Sudhakaran, who was then the KPCC President and the UDF candidate for the Kannur constituency. However, following mediation by senior party leaders, Divakaran rescinded his decision, which led to his eventual reinstatement into the Congress party.

The local body elections across Kerala are scheduled to be conducted in two phases. The first phase of polling will take place on December 9, covering various local bodies from Thiruvananthapuram to Ernakulam. The second phase is set for December 11, encompassing regions from Thrissur to Kasaragod. The comprehensive counting of votes for both phases is slated for December 13.