In Kerala, Congress rejig fuels raging power tussle between Sudhakaran-Satheesan and ‘A’-‘I’ groups

The rival groups, led by ailing former chief minister Oommen Chandy and former home minister Ramesh Chennithala, have now come out openly against the selection of the presidents in 113 BCCs, charging that they were not consulted over it.

The convener of the Congress-led UDF and ex-KPCC chief, M M Hassan, a prominent face of the Congress “A” (Antony) group in the state, alleged Sunday that the list of the 113 block unit chiefs was firmed up without proper intra-party consultation. “The unity in the party has dimmed. State Congress leadership is responsible for this serious situation. Party central leadership had directed the state leadership to consult with us on the disputed names. That did not happen. Hence, we are seeking the intervention of the party high command,’’ he said.

The row over the appointment of the Congress’s block unit presidents has led to its “A” and “I” (Karunakaran) groups joining hands against Sudhakaran and Satheesan, who have been leading the party after the Congress debacle in the 2021 state Assembly elections. Hassan came out against the duo after holding deliberations with senior factional leaders including Chennithala, who leads the “I” group.

However, unfazed by protests by senior state Congress leaders, Sudhakaran said Monday that there would be no going back on the organisational revamp. “Next in the line of organisational reshuffle is the appointment of mandalam (below block) committee presidents, which would be completed in a time-bound manner,’’ he said.

Attacking the state satraps, Sudhakaran charged that they were responsible for “spoiling” the atmosphere of unity in the party. “Who has taken the differences within the party to the media? They have done it. Only a few leaders have the opinion that the unity in the party is lost over the selection of block presidents,’’ he said.

Sudhakaran sought to extend an olive branch to the disgruntled group leaders, who boycotted a training camp for the newly-appointed block party presidents in Kochi on Monday. Chennithala and senior Chandi loyalist K C Joseph were among the party leaders who did not turn up for the session in Kochi, although it was also attended by the All-India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Tariq Anwar.

Anwar said in Kochi that the party was ready to look into the complaints regarding the list. “The leaders can raise the complaints either with me or the party high command. However, groupism in the party would not be allowed,’’ he said.

“Both Congress groups (“A” and “I”) have decided to boycott the training session as a mark of protest towards the one-sided appointment of block presidents. AICC leadership had given instruction to Sudhakaran and Satheesan to consult all senior (group) leaders. But the duo wanted to get dominance over the entire party machinery and hence neglected our views. We are looking for the intervention of the party high command,’’ said a source from the “I” group.

With the 2024 Lok Sabha elections less than a year away, the Congress unit in Kerala has been trying to resolve its impasse over organisational reshuffle. Although the district party chiefs were named in 2021, the nomination of the DCC members has still been pending due to lack of consensus among the leaders of various factions. Besides, the reorganisation of the party at the grassroots level has been pending for the last two years on account of differences among senior leaders, who have been looking to get their nominees appointed across the state.

Congress legislator Mathew Kuzhalnadan said the rebellion of the factional leaders has “disappointed” the party workers, who are fighting on the streets against the policies of the CPI(M)-led LDF government. “Merit of leaders matters in the rejuvenation of the party machinery. Those group leaders are against party unity as they had emerged only through factions. They want groups for their survival. These senior leaders have to accept the reality that days of groupism are over as the party in Kerala is not in a position to withstand an internal squabble. This is the time to fight against the state government,’’ he said.

The Congress groups led by Chandy and Chennithala, which inherited their legacies from party stalwarts, A K Antony and late K Karunakaran, respectively, had been dominating party politics in Kerala for a long time, sharing most of the organisational appointments – or government positions when the party had been in power – at various levels.

However, the Congress’s defeat in two consecutive Assembly elections, in 2016 and 2021, led to a change of guard in the state party leadership. When the Sudhakaran-Satheesan team took charge of the party, several young leaders rallied round their efforts to rejuvenate the organisation, even as the Chandy and Chennithala groups started getting weakened.

While an ailing Chandy retreating from active politics led to a virtual disintegration of his group, the Chennithala faction also suffered a setback after some of its leaders joined hands with the emerging party leader Shashi Tharoor, the high-profile MP.

Despite the two factions coming together against them, the Sudhakaran- Satheesan camps are looking to complete the “transition process” in the organisation by appointing new presidents in all block and mandalam committees in a bid to establish their upper hand in the state party unit.