Kannur election prep complete, home voting from March 30: Collector

Kannur District Collector Arun K. Vijayan confirmed all election preparations are complete and reviewed, with political parties satisfied. Home voting for senior citizens starts March 30. Security measures, including 34 CAPF companies, are in place.

Poll Preparedness Reviewed

Kannur District Collector Arun K. Vijayan on Wednesday said that all preparations for the upcoming elections in the district have been completed and reviewed by election commission observers. Talking to ANI, he said, "... All the poll preparedness activities have been reviewed by the observers of the election commission as well as discussed with the political parties, and they have expressed their satisfaction with the preparedness. Political parties were also consulted and expressed satisfaction with the arrangements."

"The training of the staff and the machine randomisation in the movement have been completed. We are starting with the home voting facility for senior citizens as well as physically handicapped individuals, starting on the 30th of March," he added. The second randomisation of voting machines is also scheduled for the same day.

Security Arrangements in Place

Collector Vijayan further assured that all security arrangements have been addressed. He said, "All other security aspects, including the deployment of police forces and central armed forces, are also being taken care of. We request the full cooperation from the political parties as well as the public in ensuring a smooth and fair election in Kannur, as done in the previous years."

Adding to this, City Police Commissioner Nidhin Raj also shares that the police are ready for the upcoming state assembly elections. He says, "For the upcoming state assembly elections, the police are fully prepared to deal with any kind of law and order issues. We will be having around 34 companies of the Central Armed Forces for the security arrangements," while speaking to ANI.

Commissioner Nidhin Raj even assured that all necessary measures are in place to ensure free, fair, and transparent polling in Kannur. "We have briefed the public about the mandate regarding the model code of conduct, especially the use of social media... We are fully prepared to conduct the free, fair, and transparent elections," he added.

2026 Kerala Assembly Elections Overview

The 2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 9, as announced by the Election Commission of India, with counting scheduled for May 4. The tenure of the current 140-member Assembly, also known as the Kerala Niyamasabha, ends on May 23. Both the BJP-led NDA and the Congress-led UDF are seeking to unseat the incumbent CPI(M)-led LDF government, which has been in power for nearly a decade, setting the stage for a high-stakes electoral contest.

The 2026 Kerala Legislative Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on April 9, the Election Commission of India announced on March 15, with the counting of votes scheduled to take place on May 4. The tenure of the current assembly is scheduled to end on May 23. The Model Code of Conduct comes into place, setting in process elections to the 140-member State Assembly, which is also known as the Kerala Niyamasabha. (ANI)

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