Professionals take up poll mantle this year
Parties welcome changing trend
KOZHIKODE: Gone are days when people with no professional qualification or proper educational background contested elections.
The trend visible in this local polls is many people in white-collar jobs entering the fray for the principal political parties.
Lawyers, teachers, doctors, engineers, IT professionals and students pursuing postgraduate degrees outnumber career politicians.
In fact, the professional background seems to have played a significant role while the parties picked up their candidates this time.
There are 12 lawyers, a retired government doctor practicing at a private firm, a nurse and few IT professionals in the race for the city corporation while there are three practicing doctors, 15 lawyers and 13 teachers for the district panchayat.
Not just professionals, many retired government officials have also joined the bandwagon to serve the people.
BJP candidate P. Surendran (Kundayithod) is a retired sub-inspector of police while LDF candidate (Mankavu) Muhammed Basheer is a former professor at the Calicut University.
“We should welcome this trend,” said UDF candidate (Thadambattuthazhya) P.P. Gita, who is a lawyer. “They are much better. More educated people should join (politics).”