Kasargod, Mar 14 (IANS): The upcoming poll battle primarily between sitting Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan and CPI(M) district secretary M.V. Balakrishnan in Kerala's Kasargod is expected to be an interesting one, especially after the entry of a third contender, a BJP candidate.

A young BJP leader, M.L. Ashwini, the people's representative at the Manjeswaram panchayat block is also fighting the polls.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress gave a rude jolt to the CPI(M), which was holding the seat from 1989 onwards. For the CPI(M), the Kasargod seat is special as it was from here that the legendary CPI(M) leader and also the first Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha in 1957- A.K. Gopalan had won.

Unnithan, who hails from an area located at the southern tip of the state capital, was a surprise choice in 2019 when he was asked to contest the constituency situated at the northern tip that borders Mangalore in Karnataka. He won with a margin of over 40,000 votes.

Balakrishnan, who was a school teacher and quit his job to be full-time with CPI(M), is a hugely popular politician in Kasargod district.

Ashwini, also a teacher, is also very active in the district and the BJP is geared up to give a tough fight to the traditional rivals.

However, figures from the 2019 polls shows that the BJP will have to work hard as their candidate managed to get 1.76 lakh votes, while the winner and the runner up managed to get more than four lakh votes each.

The CPI(M) appears to be confident this time as in the 2021 Assembly polls it won five out of the seven segments.

With a fairly sizeable Muslim voters in the constituency, both the Congress and the CPI(M) are hoping that the CAA will turn to their advantage.