K S Sabarinadhan for Mayor, 24-year-old Vaishna Suresh in fray; Congress hellbent on wresting power in Thiruvananthapuram

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress is hell-bent on ending its underwhelming political record in the Thiruvananthapuram corporation this time. Shocking Kerala’s political arena, the party on Sunday announced half of its candidates for the local body polls without even waiting for the official announcement for the elections.

Despite disputes and uproars within the party, Congress pacified tensions and completed the first phase of candidate selection, which is an achievement nonetheless. Women, along with candidates from the scheduled castes, have been fielded in the general wards. The Congress also took care to field senior leaders and students, after scrutinising the wards that would come out in the party's favour.

KSU District Vice President Vaishna, a 24-year-old law student. is the youngest in the list. Johnson Joseph, who has been a public representative for 30 years, is the most senior leader on the list.

Vaishna, 24, is the youngest candidate in the Congress's first list of candidates. She will contest from the Muttada ward, a sitting seat of the CPM. Vaishna, an employee of Technopark, is also a law student at Peroorkada Law College. After earning a diploma in journalism from the Thiruvananthapuram Press Club, she was a presenter on various TV channels and major shows in the city.

Congress State General Secretary Neethu Vijayan, district office bearers A. Akhila, P. Reshma and others are also in the fray. The nomination of former MLA K. S. Sabarinadhan as the mayoral candidate has changed the political equation in the capital city and equally enthused the spirits among Congress cadres.

LDF and BJP are yet to decide on their candidates. The core committee decided to complete the decision by Tuesday. There are also plans to field Jawahar Bal Manch National Chairman G.V. Hari and Youth Congress District President Nemom Shajeer in two wards under the Nemom constituency. The district leadership is waiting for their consent.

Vaishna, who was the president of the KSU unit of Government Women’s College, had contested the union elections as the chairperson candidate. She was the vice president of the KSU Vattiyoorkavu constituency. Vaishna, who has shown talent in basketball, is also a Carnatic musician.