The second phase of Kerala's local body elections finished peacefully on Thursday in seven northern districts, with a voter turnout of 76.08%. This is higher than the 70.91% turnout in the southern districts on December 9. Some minor complaints of bogus voting and technical glitches with electronic voting machines were reported. While all political fronts felt confident of winning, tensions rose with heated exchanges between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and United Democratic Front (UDF). The fights focused on two hot issues: the alleged gold theft at Sabarimala and rape allegations against Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkootathil. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan criticized UDF leaders, calling them "womanisers and sexual perverts" who intimidate survivors. He defended the government's support for the Sabarimala criminal investigation. Opposition leaders V.D. Satheesan and Ramesh Chennithala said Vijayan protects CPI(M) leaders facing sexual assault charges and urged him to stop shielding them. Chennithala also criticized delays handling complaints against former Left-backed legislators. The media spotlight fell on Rahul Mamkootathil, who reappeared after two weeks to vote. His case stirred debate in Congress about his expulsion. KPCC president Sunny Joseph claimed the second rape complaint against Mamkootathil was "orchestrated" and politically motivated, but Satheesan disagreed, saying a complaint must be well-drafted. Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said Vijayan’s remarks distract from real governance issues. While the first election phase focused on actor Dileep’s acquittal in a rape case, the second phase centered on Mamkootathil’s controversy. Other election day comments touched on Congress’s quiet collaboration with the Welfare Party of India and criticism of government development failures.