As the deadline to withdraw the nomination papers for the Pala byelection ended on Saturday, one more person backed out from the contest, bringing down the number of persons in the fray to 13.
Eleven candidates are contesting the bypoll as Independents. The candidates fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will contest in their respective party symbols.
BJP’s N. Hari has been allotted lotus symbol and NCP’s Mani C. Kappen, clock.
Jose Tom Pulikkunnel, who contests as United Democratic Front independent on being denied Kerala Congress (M)’s party symbol, is allotted ‘pineapple’.
Other candidates
The names of the remaining candidates and their respective symbols are as follows: Maju (telephone), George Francis (television), Babu Joseph (autorickshaw), Ignatius Illimoottil (electric pole), Joby Thomas (Baby walker), Tom Thomas (Alamara), C.J. Philip (balloon), Jomon Joseph (sugarcane farmer), Sunil Kumar (bangles), and Joseph Jacob (sewing machine).
N. Ashok Babu, who has been appointed by the Election Commission as expenditure observer for the byelection, took charge on Saturday.
A 2002 batch IRS officer, Mr. Babu is joint commissioner of the Income Tax Department in Maharashtra.
Candidates and the public can contact him on his temporary mobile number 9400270316.
As per the final estimates, the number of voters in Pala stands at 1,79,107 with the names of 1,557 voters being added to the list after the previous Lok Sabha election.
According to authorities, there will be 176 polling booths, of which 18 will be in urban areas and 158 in rural areas.
Vote counting will be held at Carmel Public Scholl, Pala. Webcasting will be done from two booths to be set up at Government Ashramam LP School, Puliyannoor.
Micro-observers will be posted at the booths to be set up at St. Joseph Girls High School, Mutholi, and Dominic Savios UP School, Mallikasseri.
Booth number 125, which is being set up at Vincent English Medium School, Keezhthadiyoor, will be the lone ‘all-women’ booth in the entire constituency.
Polling booths from 127 to 131, which will be set up at St. Thomas College of Teacher Education, Pala, St. Thomas Higher Secondary School, Pala, Alphonsa College, Arunapuram, and St. Thomas TTI, Pala, will function as polling stations.
