Days after Rahul Gandhi announced he was standing for the elections from Wayanad, Kerala, Amit Shah, on the 3rd of April, made a last minute change regarding the candidate representing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from the same constituency.
As per Amit Shah’s announcement, the new candidate from Wayanad is Thushar Vellappally, the Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) President.
Aged 50, Thushar Vellappally is the son of Vellappally Natesan, the General Secretary of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP.) What is noteworthy here is, the SNDP represents the Hindu Ezhava caste, an influential caste in Kerala. This is considered to be the primary reason for Thushar’s nomination.
Thushar, on his part, responded to the nomination by saying, “Sir thanks for giving me
the opportunity and big thanks for the kind words. This behind the curtain drama of the left and congress we will expose to our country men. I am with you in this fight to eradicate foreign rule from our motherland. Namo Again (sic.)”
While the BJP seems to have complete faith in Thushar’s nomination, the Indian National Congress (INC) sees no threat with his candidature. According to the INC, Thushar is nothing more than a representative of the SNDP.
Initially, Pally Vathiattu was the BJP’s nominee for contesting from Wayanad. However, Shah made the change of nominating Thushar Vellappally for strategic reasons. With Thushar already having a strong following in Wayanad, owing to the SNDP, his candidature would give the INC a tough fight.
With less than ten days to go for the Lok Sabha elections to begin, the fight is getting more intense every day. Twenty nine members filed their nominations for the elections in Kerala, which will be held during the third phase.
Kerala will contest the Lok Sabha elections for 20 seats, on the 23rd of April. The results of the elections will be announced on the 23rd of May.
Stay tuned for further updates about the Lok Sabha elections.
