THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the political fronts gearing up for the battle after somehow completing the candidate selection, the constituencies in the state are heading into the heat of the assembly elections.

At the same time, the ruckus that erupted after the announcement of the candidate list has not yet subsided within the fronts. The internal conflict is at its worst in Congress.

With the finalisation of candidates, 30 to 40 constituencies are all set to witness triangular battle. The most notable among these is the Nemom constituency where K Muraleedharan will take on V Sivankutty and Kummanam Rajasekharan. Thripunithura, Thrithala, Konni, Palakkad and Malampuzha are some of the ten "hotspots" that will witness intense battle. The candidature of E Sreedharan in Palakkad, KK Rema in Vadakara and lastly Lathika Subhash in Ettumanoor are also under active discussion.

The LDF was relieved that the CPM's intervention to extinguish the fire of unrest in Kuttyadi and Ponnani was effective to some extent. However, the Congress leadership is upset that Lathika Subhash's protest by tonsuring her head in front of the KPCC headquarters has affected the party's morale despite the party releasing a list of candidates which included energetic
newcomers.

The withdrawal of the BJP candidate in Mananthavady and the protests against party candidates in Aranmula and Kodungallur were a setback for the BJP leadership. The party is yet to announce its candidate in a prestigious seat like Kazhakoottam. Many are wondering whether Sobha Surendran, who is reportedly not on good terms with the state party leadership, will be announced as the candidate in Kazhakoottam. Interestingly, Sobha had announced that she was ready to contest from Kazhakoottam.

The Congress leadership is working hard to solve the problems in the party. The riot against Irikkur candidate Sajeev Joseph intensified on Monday. KC Joseph and MM Hassan will reach Kannur today to solve the problem. Protests over the announcement of candidates for the remaining seven seats should also be quelled. Though the candidate has not been announced in Vattiyoorkavu, the crisis is severe.

In UDF, there is unrest within the Muslim League as well. After the protest in Tirurangadi against former party general secretary KPA Majeed, the commotion in Kalamassery is also causing a headache for the leadership. The CPM leadership, which had succeeded in suppressing the public protest against the candidate in Ponnani, gave in to the extraordinary move in Kuttiyadi as it was aware of the possible repercussions.