Lakshadweep: Cong candidate begins campaign with Eid prayers, rings in birthday on the trail
Apr 12, 2024
Lakshadweep [India], April 12 : Congress candidate Muhammed Hamdullah Sayeed went door to door to seek electoral support, while also ringing in his birthday on the campaign trail on Thursday.
He was also spotted interacting with locals while canvassing for votes on Thursday. Polling for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Union Territory (UT) is scheduled for April 19. 
Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls, Sayeed said, "I started my campaign today by offering my Eid prayers. Thereafter, we went door to door. Polling for the Lok Sabha seat in Lakshadweep is just five days away now. We will be campaigning over the next few days, from 7 am to 10 pm. We have already campaigned in the islands twice. We will be winding up our campaign by the 16th of this month. As leaders aspiring to be people's representatives, we have to lend a patient audience to the people and see what we can do for them."
He added that the people of Lakshadweep were politically very aware and active.
"Although we are far away from the mainland, people here are still connected and aware of issues making headlines," he added.
Sayeed was elected MP from Lakshadweep in the 15th Lok Sabha (2014-19).
In the 2019 elections, NCP's PP Mohammed Faizal emerged victorious, getting 22851 votes. Sayeed lost by a narrow margin, securing 22,028 votes.
Incumbent MP Mohammed Faizal said he was confident that the anti-incumbency factor wouldn't impact the electoral outcome in the UT.
Notably, Faizal contested from Lakshadweep under the NCP symbol--'clock'. However, after the split in the party triggered by his nephew Ajit Pawar, a new symbol, that of a 'Man blowing turha' (trumpet), was allotted to the Sharad Pawar faction.
Lakshadweep is the country's smallest Lok Sabha constituency, in terms of the number of voters, sending only one MP to the Lok Sabha. The UT will go to the polls in the first phase on April 19.
The UT will witness a triangular fight between the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), Congress, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP supported by the BJP.
