As M. Mukesh enters the lobby of Holy Cross Hospital, Kottiyam, there is an instant burst of activity. The candidate is mobbed by a crowd of visitors and staff who squeeze themselves into the frame for a photograph with the star.
Countless selfies and camera flashes ensue and he scurries forward with folded hands. At the hospital canteen, he introduces himself as the LDF candidate and requests the voters for their support. A bunch of women who work in the kitchen ask for a selfie and he is ready to oblige. Before leaving he jests in that familiar style, ‘it’s five votes for one selfie, okay?’. At the nearby convent, he requests the nuns to pray for his success and Sr. Rachel, Principal of the nursing school, places her hand on his head in blessing. As the students gather, he starts addressing them in a simple, effortless manner. He talks about his work as Kollam MLA and how his constituency fared in comparison and about development works worth ₹1,748 crore.
N.K. Premachandran’s cadre is confident about winning the seat with a landslide margin and his electioneering hardly hits a low note. The Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader is a bundle of energy even under the relentless April sun as he moves from place to place on the second day of his roadshow, covering a string of points in Eravipuram and Kollam. There are rousing receptions, loud slogans, and cheering party workers.
Mr. Premachandran is his familiar no-nonsense self as he talks about development, “I don’t have to take you anywhere to show what I have done. Just take a stroll through Kollam,” he says. As he passes, a couple of youngsters start shouting, ‘kanne karale premalu’. Vipin Kumar, a Congress activist, says his only doubt is about how big the margin will be. “Mr. Premachandran is a firebrand leader and competent Parliamentarian who has risen to national prominence. He is a candidate adored by the masses,” he says.
On the day NDA candidate G. Krishnakumar filed his nomination papers, BJP activists assembled on the National Highway and are all geared for his roadshow covering Ithikkara, Adichanallur, Pooyapalli, and Chathannur. He was expected around 3 p.m., but the candidate arrives nearly two hours late. Mridula and Renju, two BJP activists, say they are quite optimistic about the electoral outcome. “My only concern is that we started our works late as his candidature was announced in the last round,” says Renju, who also represents Kaithakuzhy ward. The candidate walks towards his vehicle which has a banner saying, ‘Modiyude guarantee, koodeyuntu Krishnakumar’. He greets the passers by, seeks their support and waves at the staff of nearby textile shop.
Sandeep, a resident of Seemati Junction, says he just wanted to see the candidate as he was impressed by his speech urging the students not to get involved in campus violence following SFI-ABVP clash at Government ITI, Chandanathope. “But I don’t know if non-partisan votes will make any difference,” he adds.
