Thiruvananthapuram: U.R. Pradeep of the CPI-M and Rahul Mamkootathil of the Congress, winners of last month’s Assembly bypolls, were sworn in during a simple ceremony held in the members' lounge of the legislature complex on Wednesday.

The event was attended by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan, ministers, legislators, family members, and friends of the newly elected legislators. Veteran Congress leader and former Speaker V.M. Sudheeran was the center of attention. Former BJP youth leader Sandeep Warrier, who left the BJP a week before the Palakkad bypolls, was also present.

Pradeep, who represents the Chelakkara Assembly constituency in Thrissur district, previously served as its legislator from 2016 to 2021. He secured victory against Congress rival and former MP Ramya Haridas with a margin of over 12,000 votes. This result brought relief to Chief Minister Vijayan, as the CPI-M faced intense campaigns by both the Congress and the BJP. However, the victory margin for the CPI-M in Chelakkara significantly declined compared to the 2021 assembly polls, where K. Radhakrishnan won by over 39,000 votes.

Rahul Mamkootathil, 34, the state Youth Congress president, won the Palakkad Assembly constituency, becoming the youngest member of the Congress-led Opposition. In a highly competitive triangular contest, Mamkootathil achieved a record-breaking margin of over 18,000 votes, with the BJP candidate finishing second and the CPI-M candidate third.

These by-elections were necessitated after K. Radhakrishnan, former SC/ST Welfare Minister and Chelakkara legislator, won the Alathur Lok Sabha seat, and Congress leader Shafi Parambil, the former Palakkad legislator, won the Vadakara Lok Sabha seat in the Lok Sabha elections held recently.