Who will be new Kerala CM? Congress chief seeks wider consultations before taking final decision
Discussions will be held with the leaders on Tuesday, and a decision is expected soon, party sources said. The three main contenders for the post of chief minister are senior leaders Ramesh Chennithala, V D Satheesan and AICC general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal.
Who will be the new Kerala CM? Congress chief has sought wider consultations before taking final decision on the matter on Tuesday. Leaders who have been called to Delhi by the central leadership include former KPCC presidents V M Sudheeran, Mullappally Ramachandran, K Muraleedharan, K Sudhakaran and M M Hassan. The party has also asked senior MLA Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan and working presidents PC Vishnunath, Shafi Parambil and AP Anil Kumar to come to Delhi.
Check list of contenders for CM post
Discussions will be held with them on Tuesday, and a decision is expected soon, party sources said. The three main contenders for the post of chief minister are senior leaders Ramesh Chennithala, V D Satheesan and AICC general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal.
The central leadership is holding wider consultations as the uncertainty continues even after party observers Ajay Maken and Mukul Wasnik met Congress MLAs and gathered their views, following which the leadership held discussions with the three main contenders for the post and KPCC president Sunny Joseph.
The high command's decision to seek the opinions of former KPCC presidents has raised hopes in the camp of Satheesan, who also enjoys strong grassroots support among UDF workers, backed by key ally Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).
Public sentiment should be taken into consideration
At least two former KPCC presidents -- Sudheeran and Muraleedharan -- are said to be of the view that public sentiment should be taken into consideration before deciding the new chief minister. The stand being taken by the IUML reflects public sentiment, the Satheesan camp claims.
They also argue that if Venugopal is given the post, the UDF will have to face two by-elections -- one to elect him to the Assembly and another to elect a new MP for the Alappuzha Lok Sabha seat currently represented by Venugopal. According to them, that would be highly risky under the prevailing political conditions in the state.
However, the working presidents, who have been called to Delhi, are believed to belong to Venugopal's camp. The Venugopal camp claims that the AICC general secretary (Organisation) enjoys the support of most elected MLAs and is a strategist capable of ensuring UDF victories in the by-elections. His camp also claims that most of the Congress MPs from Kerala also support Venugopal.
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