Muslim League retains E Ahamed’s Malappuram LS seat; Kunhalikutty wins

April 17, 2017

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 17: The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) retained the Malappuram Lok Sabha constituency on Monday, with Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) national general secretary and former minister P K Kunhalikutty winning the April 12 by-election by a thumping margin of 171,023 votes.

malapuram

Kunhalikutty polled 515,330 votes while CPM’s M B Faisal, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) candidate, polled 344,307 votes. The BJP’s N Sreeprakash finished third with 65,675 votes. A total of 4,098 None Of The Above (NOTA) votes were polled in the by-election that was announced following the death of IUML MP E Ahamed. The IUML’s victory margin has fallen since 2014 – Ahamed defeated CPM’s P K Sainaba by 194,739 votes – but Kunhalikutty fared better in terms of the number of votes; 515,330 against Ahamed’s 437,723.

Amid celebrations by party activists in the district, a stronghold of the IUML, Kunhalikutty called it a “grand performance” by the opposition UDF. He noted that the modest returns for the BJP – only 970 votes more than what Sreeprakash himself polled in 2014 – proved that the party had no role to play in the state’s politics.

“This is a huge setback for the BJP; the results prove that it has no relevance in Kerala. There was no communal polarisation in the constituency, the fight was entirely political,” Kunhalikutty said.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called the ruling CPM’s performance an improvement on the 2014 results. He dismissed analyses that dubbed the result as a report on the CPM-led LDF government’s 10 months in office. “Compared to the previous Lok Sabha election, the UDF has not managed the kind of increase in vote shares that the LDF has,” Vijayan said in New Delhi.

Kunhalikutty maintained steady leads in all the seven Assembly constituencies in Malappuram right from the initial stages of counting and barring Perinthalmanna, where his lead was below 10,000 votes, sustained huge leads at the end of it.

CPM’s Faisal was expected to pose stiffer resistance to Kunhalikutty; the CPM has attributed the IUML’s big win also to the absence of the Social Democratic Party of India and the Welfare Party of India in the election. The ruling party stated that the absence of the two parties – their candidates together polled over 77,000 votes in 2014 – meant an easier outing for the IUML.

The opposition Congress is eyeing gains from the IUML’s performance and has called the result a progress report on the Left government in the state and the BJP-led government at the Centre. “Kerala has, again, realised that only the UPA can halt the run of the Sangh Parivar,” Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala said.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 15,2025

Udupi, Dec 15: What was meant to be a post-pilgrimage gathering turned tragic in Padukere village of Brahmavar taluk, Udupi district, late Sunday night, when a clash among youths escalated into a fatal assault, leaving one man dead.

The victim has been identified as 30-year-old Santosh Mogaveera, a resident of Padukere.

According to preliminary information, the incident took place during a late-night drinking party involving a group of local youths who had recently returned after completing their pilgrimage to the Sabarimala shrine. An argument reportedly broke out among the group and soon escalated into a violent confrontation.

During the ensuing brawl, Santosh Mogaveera was allegedly assaulted and collapsed at the spot after sustaining serious injuries. He was rushed by local residents to a private hospital in Brahmavar, where doctors declared him dead.

On receiving information, senior police officials, including Brahmavar Circle Inspector Gopikrishna, Kota Police Sub-Inspector Praveen Kumar T, Station ASI Manthesh Jabagoudar, and head constables Pradeep and Ashok, visited the spot and conducted an inspection.

Police have taken four youths into custody in connection with the incident. A case has been registered at the Kota police station, and further investigation is underway to ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to the death.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 2,2025

DKSsiddu.jpg

Bengaluru: 'Nati koli saaru' (country chicken curry) considered one of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s favourites along with steaming hot idlis was on the breakfast menu at Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s residence on Tuesday, according to official sources.

The spread also included 'nati koli' fry, vada and pongal, among other items, they said.

In an apparent show of unity, Siddaramaiah visited Shivakumar’s residence for breakfast, just days after the two leaders shared a meal amid a simmering power tussle in the state Congress.

Siddaramaiah drove to the Deputy CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar, where he was received by Shivakumar and his brother D K Suresh, who is a former Congress MP.

Suresh and Kunigal MLA H D Ranganath, a relative of Shivakumar, joined them for breakfast, which featured a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

Speaking to reporters later, Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar had invited him during his visit to the CM’s residence for breakfast on Saturday.

Asked about the difference between the two meals, the chief minister said, "At his (Shivakumar’s) house it was non-veg, while at my house it was veg. He is a vegetarian, I am a non-vegetarian. I had not prepared non-veg. I told DK to get chicken from the village as you won’t get the original in Bengaluru."

Shivakumar said he had initially invited Siddaramaiah to his residence, but the CM had suggested visiting his place first and reciprocating later. "It was a vegetarian breakfast at the CM’s house on Saturday," he noted.

"Today, I invited him (the CM) to my house. He enjoyed the breakfast, which had his Mysuru taste," Shivakumar added. At this point, Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar’s wife is also from Mysuru.

Saturday’s breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s official residence, held as part of efforts by the Congress high command to ease tensions in the leadership dispute between the two, reportedly included idlis and sambar, according to official sources.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 15,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 15: Air India Express has announced that it will resume direct flight services between Mangaluru and Muscat from March 2026, restoring an important international air link for passengers from the coastal region.

Airport authorities said the service will operate twice a week—on Sundays and Tuesdays—from March 1. The initial flights are scheduled on March 3, 8 and 10, followed by March 15 and 17, with the same operating pattern to continue thereafter. The flight duration is approximately three hours and 25 minutes.

The Mangaluru–Muscat route was earlier operated under the 2025 summer schedule, with services beginning on July 14. At that time, Air India Express had operated four flights a week before suspending the service.

Officials said the summer schedule will come into effect from March 29, after which changes in flight timings and departure schedules from Mangaluru are expected. Passengers have been advised to check the latest schedules while planning their travel.

The resumption of direct flights to Muscat is expected to significantly benefit expatriates, business travellers and others, further strengthening Mangaluru’s air connectivity with the Gulf region.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.