Kaun banega Kerala CM? Suspense deepens as Congress calls more leaders to Delhi
The Congress high command has called more Kerala leaders to Delhi as it weighs its chief ministerial choice after the UDF's election sweep. The delay, amid competing claims and ally unease, has intensified pressure to finalise government formation.
More than a week after the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) swept the Kerala Assembly elections, suspense over who will become the state's next Chief Minister continues, with the party high command yet to take a final call.
The Assembly election results were declared on May 4, but the Congress leadership has still not announced the name of the Congress Legislature Party leader. The delay has triggered intense political discussions within the party and among alliance partners, even as consultations in Delhi continue.
In the latest development, the Congress high command has summoned several senior Kerala leaders to the national capital to seek their opinion on government formation and the chief ministerial pick.
Senior Congress leader and MLA-elect K Muraleedharan, a former Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, has been asked to reach the AICC headquarters in Delhi on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, Muraleedharan said the decision on the Kerala Chief Minister was expected within the next 48 hours.
Apart from Muraleedharan, the party has also called KPCC vice presidents AP Anil Kumar, Shafi Parambil and PC Vishnunadh, along with senior leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, for discussions in Delhi.
Meanwhile, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has cut short his Bengaluru visit and will land in Delhi to attend the high command meeting with Kerala leaders.
The prolonged delay comes even as the term of the current Kerala Assembly is set to expire on May 23, increasing pressure on the Congress leadership to wrap up consultations quickly.
The chief ministerial race is currently centred around three senior Congress leaders: Ramesh Chennithala, AICC general secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal and Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan. The Congress high command held detailed discussions with all three leaders in New Delhi on Saturday.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi also met Satheesan, Venugopal, Chennithala, KPCC chief Sunny Joseph and AICC general secretary in-charge of Kerala Deepa Dasmunsi as part of the ongoing exercise to select the Congress Legislature Party leader, who will eventually take over as Chief Minister.
According to sources, a majority of Congress MLAs are believed to be backing Venugopal for the top post, while Satheesan is seen as the more popular public choice.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on Monday defended the delay in the decision-making process, saying it was part of a democratic exercise within the party. He said all Congress and UDF workers in Kerala would accept whatever decision the high command eventually takes.
"We have conveyed whatever we had to say to the high command. They have heard everything. The rest is for them to decide," Chennithala said after returning from New Delhi.
Following Saturday's meetings in Delhi, Kerala Congress leaders and Deepa Dasmunsi jointly appealed to party workers not to stage protests or put up flex boards backing individual leaders in the chief ministerial race.
The delay has also reportedly caused unease among some UDF allies despite the alliance's emphatic electoral victory. The UDF secured 102 seats in the 140-member Kerala Assembly, comfortably crossing the two-thirds majority mark.
Within the alliance, the Congress emerged with 63 seats, while the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) won 22. The Kerala Congress (KEC) bagged eight seats and the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) secured three, making the allies' views significant in the final power-sharing discussions.