Will contest from Muvattupuzha itself; Mathew Kuzhalnadan dismisses rumours of him switching to Kothamangalam

KOCHI: Congress leader Mathew Kuzhalnadan has dismissed rumours that he is planning to change his constituency for the upcoming Assembly elections. Reports had suggested that he would move from Muvattupuzha to Kothamangalam. However, Kuzhalnadan said that no such discussion has taken place. He clarified that he will contest once again as the UDF candidate from Muvattupuzha. He added that other matters related to seat selection will be decided by the alliance leadership.

"UDF workers strongly wish to win the Kothamangalam seat, which is understandable. They are disappointed that the LDF won there in the last two elections. The rumours regarding me contesting from Kothamangalam may have originated from opinions expressed by some people in that context," Kuzhalnadan said.

It was DYFI leader Antony John who won from Kothamangalam in the 2016 and 2021 Assembly elections.

In the 2016 Assembly elections, the LDF won in Muvattupuzha, but the Congress reclaimed the seat in 2021 through Mathew Kuzhalnadan. He defeated CPI candidate Eldo Abraham by a margin of 5,468 votes. UDF sources indicate that Kuzhalnadan is likely to be given the seat again this time. Meanwhile, there is a demand from the local Congress leadership that the Kothamangalam seat should be taken over by the Congress from the Kerala Congress (Joseph) faction. They believe that contesting under the Congress hand symbol would help the UDF regain the seat.