Palakkad: Vadakara MP Shafi Parambil expressed his happiness over the UDF's landslide victory in the Palakkad assembly bypolls. Terming the win as a victory for the secular people of Palakkad, the leader appealed to the media to refrain from communalising UDF's success. He pointed out that controversies may make headlines on news channels, but they never truly resonate with the people.

Rahul Mamkootathil, the winning candidate who accompanied Shafi, thanked the voters for electing him as the new MLA of Palakkad. He won the election with a record margin of 18,840 votes.

“I consider myself a very fortunate candidate. The entire Congress leadership took significant initiative during this election, leaving me with the responsibility of engaging with the public. Shafi Parambil and VK Sreekandan played pivotal roles in the campaign. Their efforts serve as a tremendous motivation for workers like me,” said Rahul Mamkootathil.

In a satirical note, Mamkootathil expressed his gratitude to the CPM for referring to him as Shafi's nominee.

“I thank CPM for calling me Shafi's nominee. It actually eased my campaign, as people recognised me as Shafi's nominee. I wish they had also called me Sreekandan's nominee in their campaigns,” said Rahul.

Former Palakkad MLA Shafi Parambil also added that some news channels launched a media hunt against the UDF during the bypolls over false bribery allegations against Rahul.

Among the 10 candidates contesting, the main contenders were Mamkootathil from the Congress-led UDF, C Krishnakumar from the BJP-led NDA, and P Sarin from the CPM-led LDF. Rahul secured 58,389 votes, while Krishnakumar received 39,549 votes and Sarin got 37,293 votes.

The byelection was necessitated following the resignation of Congress leader Shafi Parambil, who vacated the seat after being elected to the Lok Sabha from Vadakara in the general election this year.