Kerala Congress leadership struggles to please members in party reconstitution

The finalisation of Congress committees in Kerala is getting delayed as the new state leadership is finding it difficult to accommodate the interests of all the prominent party leaders at the state and national levels.

The new leadership comprising Kerala PCC president K Sudhakaran and opposition leader V D Satheesan had earlier decided to stop the hitherto practice of forming 'jumbo committees', as it is widely referred to, by accommodating nominees of all prominent leaders.

However, having burnt its fingers for not taking the prominent leaders into confidence while finalising the district Congress committee presidents last month, the Sudhakaran-Satheesan combine seems to be now struggling to implement its foremost decision to do away with the jumbo state committee and not to concede to group interests of the leaders.

Also Read | Congress slams Kerala government for not withdrawing cases related to Sabarimala, CAA protests

Even as Sudhakaran and Satheesan almost finalised the draft list and went to Delhi for AICC's nod the other day, they had to return without accomplishing the mission. Concerns expressed by some top leaders from Kerala over not including their nominees and the difference of the state leadership with an AICC general secretary from Kerala over the compulsion to include the latter's nominees were said to be the reason.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said on Tuesday that the reports that he was a reason for delaying the finalisation of Kerala PCC officer bearers were not true.

Sudhakaran said that the list was almost finalised and would be announced soon. He also denied reports of Venugopal's intervention.

Also Read | Kerala BJP's Ali Akbar quits all organisational responsibilities

It was learnt that the state leadership sent the draft list of Kerala PCC office bearers to the AICC general secretary in-charge of Kerala Tariq Anwar by Tuesday evening.

While the Kerala PCC was earlier having a 'jumbo committee' of 12 vice presidents, 42 general secretaries and around 100 secretaries, the new leadership wanted to limit it to 51.

After the district, Congress committee presidents were announced last month the state Congress witnessed severe unrest with top leaders like Oommen Chandy and Ramesh Chennithala openly flaying the state leadership for not consulting them before finalising the list. Five prominent leaders also left the party. Former Kerala PCC presidents Mullappally Ramachandran and V M Sudheeran openly expressed their displeasure against the state leadership.

Hence the Sudhakaran-Satheesan combine was learnt to have consulted all senior leaders before finalising the draft PCC office bearers list. Certain relaxations in norms were learnt to be given to a couple of senior women leaders to ensure adequate women representation in the committee.

Watch the latest DH Videos here: