Transwoman Arunima to contest in local body polls; nomination papers accepted after scrutiny

ALAPPUZHA: Transwoman Arunima will contest on a reserved seat in the local body elections. The Vayalar district panchayat division accepted the candidacy of UDF candidate Arunima on Saturday. The uncertainty ended after Arunima's nomination papers were accepted after scrutiny. Arunima M Kurup is the KSU general secretary and the state patron of the Transgender Congress.

Since her candidacy was announced, Arunima was at the receiving end of criticism and cyberattacks. Despite Arunima responding that she was listed as a woman in all the documents, uncertainty circled over her nomination papers. Vayalar division is a women's reserved seat under the Alappuzha district panchayat.

On another note, Ameya Prasad, a transgender, had been declared the Congress candidate in the Pothancode division of the Thiruvananthapuram district panchayat.