BJP leading in Kerala capital

BJP candidate O Rajagopal kept on maintaining his lead in the Thiruvananthapuram lok Sabha seat in Kerala keeping alive the party’s hope that the lotus may finally bloom in God’s Own country when 75 percent of the total polled votes were counted even as the Congress-led UDF was leading in 11 of the total 20 seats in the State while the left was in the lead in eight seats.

When 75 percent of votes were counted in Thiruvananthapuram, Rajagopal was leading by 2,566 votes over his Congress rival Shashi Tharoor, Union Minister and sitting MP. The CPI(M)-led lDF’s Bennet Abraham, CPI Independent, had not been able to come even to the second place at any stage of counting.

Among the prominent leaders who were leading in the State included Union Ministers KV Thomas, Kodikkunnil Suresh, KC Venugopal, Mullappally Ramachandran (all Congress) and E Ahamed of the Muslim league. Among the prominent candidates trailing was Congress’s national spokesman PC Chacko in Chalakkudy.