Thiruvalla, Kerala, Dec 01: Polling began at all the 109 polling booths for the assembly by-election to Thiruvalla constituency in Kerala at 8 am today. Long queues were seen before several polling stations. UDF candidate Elizabeth Mammen and NDA nominee Prathapa Chandra Varma were among the prominent persons who exercised their franchise as soon as polling began.

The bypoll to the constituency, with an electorate of 1,17,742, was necessitated by the death of Mammen Mathai, who represented the seat from 1991.

Mammen Mathai's widow and UDF candidate Elizabeth Mammen, LDF's Varghese George and NDA's Prathapa Chandra Varma were the main contestants.

The byelection acquired political significance following the conflict between senior Congress leader K Karunakaran and Chief Minister A K Antony.

Bureau Report