Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan filed his nomination papers on Monday morning for the April Assembly polls in the state. The veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader is contesting from Dharmadam constituency. Pinarayi Vijayan, who submitted two sets of papers, arrived at the Kannur Collectorate at around 11 am, following COVID-19 protocols. He was wearing a face shield, mask and gloves, and was accompanied by party leaders, including CPI(M)'s Kannur district secretary MV Jayarajan.

This is the second time Vijayan is contesting from Dharmadam constituency.

"(I have) submitted nomination papers as the candidate for Left Democratic Front (LDF) from Dharmadam constituency. LDF is contesting in these elections with the confidence gained from the sincere support of the public. The developmental activities we did for public welfare will be carried on more effectively. LDF will work for the better future of Kerala, keeping the people close to them. We will keep that promise," the CM wrote in a Facebook post.

In the 2016 elections, Pinarayi Vijayan won from Dharmadam with a margin of 36,905 votes. He received 87,329 votes while his opponent, Mambaram Divakaran of the Indian National Congress, got 50,424 votes.

In 2011, CPM’s KK Narayan won the Assembly elections from Dharmadam, by defeating Mambaram Divakaran by a margin of 15,162 votes.

This time, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is fielding its senior leader CK Padmanabhan in Dharmadam against Pinarayi Vijayan. In the 2016 elections, BJP candidate Mohanan Mananthery bagged only 12,763 votes in the constituency.

This is the second time that Pinarayi Vijayan is contesting from Dharmadam. He has been a member of the Kerala Assembly from Kuthuparamba three times (1970, 1977 and 1991) and Payyanur (1996) once. This is presently his fifth term as a legislator and he will be contesting for a sixth term next month.

Voting will take place on April 6 and the results will be announced on May 2.