In a formal statement on Thursday, the Congress party in Kerala (63 members) gave the party’s central leadership the formal sanction to pick the next Chief Minister as the party was engaging in a fierce struggle for the top job after winning a landslide victory in the elections.
During the meeting in Thiruvananthapuram, a one-line resolution was passed off unanimously, according to party leaders, allowing the high command to pick up the chief ministerial candidate. Chalakudy MLA Saneesh Kumar Joseph confirmed the development and said it is a complete trust in the leadership of the country.
Sunny Joseph, president of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee, and key leaders such as outgoing Congress Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan and veteran leader Ramesh Chennithala, who are seen to be strong contenders for the position, moved the resolution. AICC general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal is also being viewed as a leading contender though he was not contesting the assembly elections.
All the 63 Congress MLAs were consulted one-on-one by senior observers Ajay Maken and Mukul Wasnik, of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) to understand the Congress’s preference and support for potential candidates in its party headquarters, Indira Bhawan.
There are still signs of factionalism in the party. The camp supporting Venugopal contends that he enjoys majority support from the MLAs, whereas those supporting Satheesan say that he enjoys the support of some of the key alliance partners like the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), the Kerala Congress (Joseph) and the Communist Marxist Party. In the meantime, Chennithala’s fans have highlighted his experience and seniority in administration.
The United Democratic Front (UDF) has come to power for the first time in 10 years in the recent Assembly elections of Kerala by winning 102 seats in the 140-member Assembly. The leadership choice will influence the new government that is to be formed in the state.