As counting of votes commenced for the April 6 Kerala assembly elections on Sunday morning, metroman E. Sreedharan is leading from Palakkad constituency. The technocrat-turned politician is leading against sitting MLA Shafi Parambil from the UDF by more than 6,000 votes.
Sreedharan's candidature had turned Palakkad into a keenly watched contest. Incumbent MLA Shafi Parambil is a two-time sitting MLA from the UDF. The CPI(M) has fielded C.P. Pramod. The BJP had pinned its hopes on increasing its vote share in the constituency, which comprises Palakkad Municipality and is one of the two civic bodies in which the BJP is in power in the state.
In 2016, Shafi Parambil had won from the constituency with a margin of 17,483 votes against BJP's Sobha Surendran, who is contesting from Thiruvananthapuram in Kazhakkoottam.
Meanwhile, the BJP-led NDA is leading from one more constituency in Kerala. Former Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan is leading by a tad from Nemom by over 500 votes. BJP state president K. Surendran is, however, trailing in both Manjeshwaram and Konni.
