The number of nominations filed in the State for the local body elections to be held in December has crossed 1.68 lakh, the State Election Commission has said, citing data uploaded from the districts till 9 p.m. on Thursday.
As per the latest update from the commission, 1,68,028 candidates have filed their nomination papers across Kerala, of which 1,23,858 are for the elections to grama panchayats. A total of 14,195 nominations have been received for the block panchayat polls and 2,830 for district panchayats. Also, 22,798 nominations have been received for municipalities and 4,347 for Corporations.
The scrutiny of the nominations will be held on Friday. The commission has issued guidelines for the scrutiny which will be performed by the returning officers concerned. November 23 is the last date for withdrawing the nominations.
Among the districts, Malappuram tops the list with 20,183 nominations followed by Ernakulam (17,266), Thrissur (17,012), Thiruvananthapuram (14,247), Kollam (13,237), Kozhikode (13,260), Alappuzha (13,013), Palakkad (12,575), Kottayam (11,921), Kannur (10,417), Pathanamthitta (8,560), Idukki (6,405), Wayanad (4,631) and Kasaragod (5,301). In the six Corporations, 1,016 nominations have been filed in Thiruvananthapuram, 556 in Kollam, 835 in Ernakulam, 690 in Thrissur, 807 in Kozhikode and 443 in Kannur.
Given the COVID-19 situation, the disease containment protocol will be strictly adhered to in the scrutiny halls.
Objections, if any, are raised against a nomination, the returning officer should carry out a concise investigation and finalise a decision, the State Election Commission said. The officer should also provide valid reasons for rejecting a nomination, the Commission said.
The local body elections, postponed on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, are scheduled to be held in three-phases. Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki will go to polls on December 8; Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Wayanad on December 10; and Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod on December 14.
