The Hindu : Congress leaders speak cryptic language

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 20, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Congress leaders speak cryptic language

By Girish Menon

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JAN. 19. With the formula to settle the Congress crisis in a fluid state, factional leaders are speaking cryptic language bewildering detractors, opponents and camp followers. Their public statements do not appear to be in tune with their behind-the-screen political moves in relation to the pact being thrashed out by the Congress high command.

The present debate in the coalition revolves around the core of the formula - induction of the KPCC president, K. Muraleedharan, into the Antony Cabinet, in return for factional peace that would enable the Congress-led UDF to collect maximum number of seats in the Lok Sabha elections.

All the major Congress factions, however, are not willing to come on record that such a formula is indeed under the consideration of the party high command, which is the acknowledged final arbiter of their brand of politics. The Karunakaran faction has averred that it has not been presented with any settlement formula, which would witness Mr. Muraleedharan as a Minister in the Antony Cabinet. "We stand by our demand for a leadership change and the formula has not been discussed with us," Rajmohan Unnithan, Karunakaran faction spokesman, said at a recent press conference.

However, Mr. Karunakaran has indicated his willingness for a dialogue without any pre-conditions. Reading between the lines, it appears that Mr. Karunakaran wants to ensure that his son gets the second best post in the Cabinet now that his moves to wrest the deputy Chief Minister's post has been nipped in the bud.

The Chief Minister, A.K. Antony, has made it quite apparent that major portfolios with some of his close confidantes are non-negotiable. He has given two options to Mr. Muraleedharan, either to continue as KPCC president or accept one of the portfolios allotted originally to the Karunakaran faction. Mr. Muraleedharan, on his part, has asserted that there is no better chair he could occupy other than the one he sits on. But he has been enthusiastic about the proposed formula, at times even taking the lead in pushing the dialogue forward.

Mr. Muraleedharan believes it would be better for him to be in the Cabinet than continue as the head of a non-functional PCC. Even if he were to continue, it is doubtful whether he would be able to do any meaningful work given the factional division that runs deep. Besides, he has nurtured the desire to make an entry into State politics. At this point of time, he appears to be eager to get inducted as Minister and his entry into the Assembly as MLA is at this point of time not a much discussed topic.

There is, however, a marginal difference between Mr. Karunakaran and Mr. Muraleedharan's positions. The latter appears to be satisfied with his induction as Minister, but the former would want to tag the settlement formula to the blueprint for seat-sharing in the Lok Sabha elections due any time. This could mean a fair accommodation for his daughter, Padmaja Venugopal, and few other leaders who have stood with him. The Antony faction asserts that no settlement formula has been discussed so far, but the faction leaders are queasy about the framework of the pact for a variety of reasons. The UDF convener, Oommen Chandy, who is also the current leader of the anti-Karunakaran factions, was not ready to concede to the fact that the settlement formula was in the air.

However, he expressed some hard views about the moves to reward indiscipline by party leaders holding important positions. Behind the screen, the anti-Karunakaran factions are reconciled to Mr. Muraleedharan's induction. Their attempt now is to prevent Mr. Karunakaran wresting the best bargain. Going by their statements, it appears that they are not as much afraid of Mr. Karunakaran as they are of Mr. Antony, who might, they fear, give in to the veteran leader in a weak moment.

Mr. Antony slightly differs from Mr. Chandy and others. While Mr. Chandy wants unity and discipline to go hand-in-hand while settling issues, Mr. Antony is willing to make any sacrifice in aid of factional peace, with discipline only a secondary issue. In the process, he has not stated his immediate political need - to ensure the UDF and the Congress a comfortable win in the Lok Sabha. Since numbers are likely to be important for the Congress high command after the elections, he obviously cannot afford to win less than the 11 seats the coalition won in the last Lok Sabha polls.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Kerala