The Congress on Thursday released the second list of candidates for the Kerala assembly elections next month. State Congress chief K Sudhakaran, who had demanded to contest from Kannu and further led a showdown in the party after threatening to quit and contest independently, has been denied a ticket. TO Mohanan has been given the Congress ticket from Kannu seat. The previous list of Congress candidates comprised 55 candidates.
The announcement comes after senior Congress leader V D Satheesan earlier in the day said all issues related to the selection of party candidates for the upcoming state polls have been resolved. Another senior leader A K Antony, said he had asked Sudhakaran to abide by the high command’s decision, however difficult, in order to ensure the defeat of the CPI(M) led Left Democratic Front.
In Perumbavoor, sitting MLA Eldhose Kunnapilly has been denied a ticket, with Manoj Moothedan fielded instead. In Tripunithura, Deepak Joy has been named in place of K Babu, who opted out of the contest.
Saji Joseph, who had threatened to contest as an independent from Kuttanad, has been accommodated in Poonjar. Indian Youth Congress leader Abin Varkey will contest from Aranmula.
Former BJP leader Sandeep Varier, who recently joined the Indian National Congress, has been fielded from Trikaripur in Kasaragod. Kottayam DCC president Nattakom Suresh will contest from Ettumanoor, a seat taken over by the Congress from Kerala Congress.
Former MLA and Thiruvananthapuram councillor K S Sabarinadhan has been fielded from Nemom, where he will face Rajeev Chandrasekhar of the BJP and V S Sivankutty of the CPI(M). Ex-minister VS Sivakumar will contest from Aruvikkara, while Sanal Kumar has been given the ticket from Parassala.
Former Kochi mayor Tony Chammany will contest from Vypeen. Overall, the Congress and its backed independents are contesting 96 seats, including eight women candidates.
With just over three weeks left for the April 9 polls, the party is expected to iron out remaining differences and step up its campaign. Results will be declared on May 4.
The K Sudhakaran discontent
The party had reportedly been under pressure from K Sudhakaran, MP from Kannur, and Adoor Prakash, MP from Attingal, both of whom have expressed interest in contesting from the Kannur and Konni assembly constituencies, respectively.
Over the past few days, Sudhakaran kept the Congress high command on edge for nearly 48 hours before he announced that he will not contest the upcoming assembly polls as an independent candidate. His decision brought significant relief to both the party leadership and its Kerala unit, which is making a strong push to return to power.
Over the past two to three days, Sudhakaran had remained firm on contesting from Kannur. Several senior leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge, A K Antony, Madhusoodhan Mistry, Ramesh Chennithala and Sunny Joseph, had attempted to persuade him, but he initially refused to back down.
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