Wayanad: A four-member group of suspected armed Maoists reached an area under Thalappuzha police station in this hill district on Wednesday morning, urging the people there to boycott the April 26 Lok Sabha polls.
A police officer said a group of police personnel has gone to Kambamala after learning about the Maoist presence in the area. However, he did not elaborate.
Meanwhile, locals said the Maoists reached the area around 6.15 am and raised slogans. The ultras also urged the people to boycott voting, they said. The Maoists were in their uniforms and were carrying guns. They spent around 20 minutes in the area, the locals added.
A purported video of the Maoists interacting with the locals surfaced later. It also showed that there were people, mainly workers, at the junction at the time of their arrival.
On April 26, poling will be conducted in Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, which is set to witness a tough contest between INDIA bloc allies. The Congress and the Communist Party of India (CPI), which are part of the Opposition's INDIA bloc, are now rivals in Kerala for the key seat in Kerala, which is one of the few states where the party still has a strong presence. All 20 constituencies of Kerala will go to the poll on Friday in the second phase of the Lok Sabha election.
The Congress has fielded its sitting MP Rahul Gandhi from the seat. The CPI's Annie Raja is Gandhi's opponent there. The BJP which is leaving no stone unturned to establish its complete dominance in the 2024 elections, has fielded Kerala State President K Surendran as a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate from the constituency.
