THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A section of Congress leaders feels that when KPCC president V. M. Sudheeran is clamouring for Assembly seats for freshers and Youth Congress leaders, he is actually implying to protect his own group. They also say Mr Sudheeran is trying to promote a new group, other than the existing ‘A’ and ‘I’ by trying to get his supporters accommodated in the Assembly elections.
Though officially there are only two factions in the Congress, over the last several months, Sudheeran’s detractors have alleged that he had been trying to bring his own coterie. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Home minister Ramesh Chennithala played spoilsport when Mr Sudheeran was firm in KPCC revamping so as to bring in his followers in the party.
“All the three senior leaders are working to protect their own interests. It is not out of principles that he is saying that newcomers and Youth Congress leaders should be accommodated on the list,” said a senior KPCC general secretary.
With 71 days left for the Assembly elections, the Congress is expected to announce the final list of candidates only after the LDF announced its list. While Congress sources told DC that the preliminary list has already been sent to the AICC leadership, Mr Sudheeran told reporters on Saturday that there is no hurry to announce the candidature and newcomers and Youth Congress leaders should be accommodated on the list.
Sudheeran’s trusted party leaders KPCC general secretaries K. P. Anil Kumar (Koilandy), Sathteeshan Pacheni (Irikoor) and P. M. Suresh Babu (Kozhikode North), Congress spokesperson Rajmohan Unnithan (Kundara), KPCC treasurer Johnson Abraham (Kuttanad), KPCC secretary Neyyatinkara Sanal, TRIDA chairman P. K. Venugopal, Kollam DCC vice-president Sooraj Ravi (Kollam) are eyeing seats. But when Mr Chandy has been rallying behind culture minister K. C. Joseph who is the sitting legislator from Irikoor constituency, it is affecting KPCC general secretary Sajeev Joseph’s hopes of being in the fray from Irikoor who actually does not belong to any faction. Youth Congress leaders supporting Mr Sudheeran includes Mr Bibin Mammen and Mr Mohammed Blathur, who are eyeing Mavelikara and Kannur seats, respectively.
Meanwhile, several Congress leaders belonging to Thiruvananthapuram district made a beeline to meet Mukul Wasnik, AICC general secretary in charge of the State, who has come to the capital city to attend two other party programmes in the coming days.
