On Thursday, the Congress heaved a sigh of relief after the Kerala High Court dismissed a plea to invalidate the election of party veteran and former Excise Minister K. Babu, the incumbent MLA from the Thripunithara constituency in the 2021 Assembly elections.
CPI(M) leader M. Swaraj had moved the court against Mr. Babu, who defeated him by 992 votes. He accused his rival of using the picture of the main deity of the Sabarimala temple, Ayyappa, for electioneering purposes.
The Assembly elections had unfolded in the political aftermath of the Save Sabarimala campaign. Both the BJP and the UDF had made the protection of faith agitation against the Supreme Court-sanctioned entry of women to the temple an emotive election issue.
