Cong candidate booked for disrupting road work

A case has been registered against Shanimol Usman, the Congress-led UDF candidate for the by-election to Aroor assembly constituency in Alappuzha district, for allegedly disrupting road construction work, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place on September 27 but the complaint was filed two days later by the Public Works Department's assistant executive engineer, they said.

"...She (Usman) reached the spot (Eramallur-Ezhupunna Road) at around 9 PM with a few party workers and opposed laying of interlocking tiles in the road citing model code of conduct," police said.

A case has been registered against her under IPC section 353 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging duty).

"This work had started much before the elections were declared. So the PWD official gave a complaint and we have registered a case," a senior police official of the district told PTI.

However, Usman said the matter was just highlighted because of the impending elections.

Senior congress leaders in the district claimed that the construction work was in violation of model code of conduct and hence they stopped it.

They claimed that the filing of the case was just political vendetta.

The model code of conduct for the five Assembly constituencies in the state, where bypolls are to be held on October 21, came into effect from September 21 when the election schedule was announced by the Election Commission.

By-elections are being held to Vattiyoorkavu, Konni, Alroor, Ernakulam and Manjeswaram segments.