Kerala Congress faces fresh fault lines as senior leaders voice dissent

The Kerala Congress (KC) is facing growing internal discontent even as it awaits the government’s decision on a Cabinet-rank post for its chairperson. Six months after the Assembly elections, a section of senior leaders is staying away from party forums and questioning the way power is being consolidated under the present leadership.

At the centre of the discontent are allegations that Assembly seats were allocated on financial considerations, senior leaders were denied their due, and key decisions were taken without adequately consulting sections of the party.

The sharpest criticism is directed at the distribution of Assembly seats, with dissident leaders alleging that the Changanassery, Thiruvalla and Kuttanad seats were influenced by financial considerations.

On Idukki seat

Among those staying away from party forums is KC vice-chairperson Joseph M. Puthussery. Irinjalakuda legislator Thomas Unniyadan, too, has kept his distance from the party’s organisational activities for some time. A section of the Idukki district committee, meanwhile, remains unhappy with the decision to give up the Idukki Assembly seat, the home turf of party chairperson P.J. Joseph, in favour of Kuttanad.

“The candidates fielded in Kuttanad and Changanassery were not party members even for a year before being fielded as candidates. It was only when the Congress insisted on not giving the Kuttanad seat that the party decided to surrender the Idukki seat,” said a senior leader.

The party’s defeat in the Thrikkodithanam division of the Kottayam district panchayat has now given the dissidence a fresh talking point. The seat, where the party has a considerable presence, fell vacant after its sitting member Vinu Job was elected to the Assembly from Changanassery. The Kerala Congress candidate’s defeat in the bypoll is now being cited by the dissidents as evidence that the party cannot afford to disregard its organisational base.

“What happened in Thrikkodithanam is a sign of things to come if the leadership continues to ignore the concerns of party workers,” Mr. Puthussery said. He confirmed that his absence from party forums was in protest against the leadership’s decisions on candidates for certain Assembly seats.

“The party may have registered a thumping win with seven seats in the Assembly elections. That, however, does not mean the party is going to keep winning these seats every time,” he said.

Ministerial berth

Mr. Unniyadan’s grievance, meanwhile, has a different but equally political dimension. The four-time legislator has maintained a firm stand against being denied a ministerial berth. What could otherwise have remained an internal party matter has now acquired a public platform through a couple of meetings organised to mark his 25 years as a legislator. At these events, some speakers openly questioned the leadership’s decision not to consider Mr. Unniyadan for a ministerial berth, triggering a dispute that spilled over into the United Democratic Front as well.

A key office-bearer of the party acknowledged the discontent, saying the immediate challenge before the leadership was to prevent individual grievances from snowballing into a wider organisational challenge.

“It is important to prevent disparate grievances from coalescing into an organisational challenge, and a recent State committee meeting has decided to initiate efforts in this direction,” the leader said.