The Hindu : National : Only two women make it in Kerala

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Friday, May 14, 2004

National

National

Only two women make it in Kerala

KOCHI, MAY 13. Of the six women fielded by political parties — the Congress, the CPI (M) and the BJP — for the May 10 polls from Kerala, only two have made it to Parliament.

Both the winners — P. Sathidevi (Vadakara) and C.S. Sujata (Mavelikkara) — are from the CPI (M).

While Ms. Sathidevi defeated the former Fisheries Minister, M.T. Padma, of the Congress by over 1.3 lakh votes, Ms. Sujatha's victory against the AICC secretary and sitting MP, Ramesh Chennithala, by over 5,868 votes was much sweeter for her party as a Congress bastion had been breached.

Besides Ms. Padma, the Congress had nominated Padmaja Venugopal (Mukundapuram) and K.A. Thulasi (Ottapalam reserved) and both were defeated.

Ms. Padmaja Venugopal, daughter of the senior Congress leader, K. Karunakaran, was defeated by a margin of over 1,08,000 votes.

In the worst-ever humiliation for the first family of Kerala politics, Ms. Padmaja's brother and Power Minister, K. Muraleedharan, who contested from the Wadakancherry Assembly seat, also had to bite the dust as he lost by over 3,000 votes. K.A. Thulasi lost to S. Ajaykumar of the CPI (M) by over 70,000 votes.

The BJP had propped up a lone woman candidate, Uma Unni from Manjeri, who also lost.

In the 1999 election, the CPI (M), the Congress and the BJP had fielded only one woman candidate each.

The CPI (M)'s A.K. Premajam, who had been re-elected, was the only successful candidate.

PTI

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