Kochi, June 16 -- As the campaign for the by-election in the Nilambur assembly constituency in Kerala enters the last lap, the two principal political fronts LDF and UDF continued to clash with each other over maintaining friendship with fringe outfits like the Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI).

The controversy in the June 19 bypoll campaign stemmed after the Welfare Party of India (WPI), the political arm of JeI, announced its support for the UDF in the bypoll last week. Since 2019, the WPI has backed the UDF in most elections.

Following the WPI's move, the CPI(M) has targeted the Congress-led UDF relentlessly for maintaining close links with "extremist" outfits like JeI and accepting their support during election campaigns.

CPI(M) state secretar...