Campaign ends in five constituencies in Kerala

: Campaigning for the bypolls to the 5 assembly constituencies in Kerala came to an end on Saturday with the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF, the main opposition Congress-headed UDF and the BJP-NDA fighting tooth and nail to woo voters.

The bypolls are being held to Vattiyoorkavu segment in Thiruvananthapuram, Aroor (Alappuzha), Konni (Pathnamthitta), Ernakulam and Manjeshwaram (Kasaragod).

The Sabarimala women entry issue, the marks row controversy against Higher Education minister K T Jaleel and the alleged "unkept" promises by the ruling LDF were some issues raised during campaigning by the UDF and the BJP.

The LDF left no stone unturned to ensure that the Sabarimala issue was not discussed in the campaign as they had drawn flak from several quarters over the women's entry issue for its alleged hastiness in implementing the Supreme Court order,permitting women of all age groups into the hill shrine.

In the recent Lok Sabha polls, post-Sabarimala agitation, the Left front had suffered a massive drubbing, losing 19 of the total 20 seats.

Senior Left leaders, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, steered clear of any controversial statements or provocative remarks on Sabarimala while campaigning.

Addressing election meetings at Konni in Pathnamthitta, where the Ayyappa temple is located, Vijayan had focused on the proposed airport being planned at Sabarimala and funds allocated to the temple board after last year's floods to take up development activities and putting up better facilities for pilgrims.

The campaign also saw the CPI(M) filing a complaint against the Nair Service Society (NSS), an organisation of the upper caste Nair community, alleging that it had openly canvassed votes for UDF candidates, especially at Vattiyoorkavu.

The NSS had recently urged its members to maintain the "right distance" from the two fronts-- LDF and UDF, thus deviating from its long held policy of "equidistance."