The Hindu : No opposition to appointment of Thankachan: Chandy

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 13, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

No opposition to appointment of Thankachan: Chandy

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, FEB. 12. Despite being unhappy about the decision of the Congress central leadership not to penalise those who indulged in anti-party activities in Kerala, the convener of the United Democratic Front (UDF), Oommen Chandy, today indicated that there would be no opposition to the appointment of P.P. Thankachan as acting Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president.

This has more or less cleared the decks for Mr. Thankachan's smooth takeover, his association with the Karunakaran faction notwithstanding. Here on a private visit, Mr. Chandy said he would not be meeting anyone in the Congress central leadership unless specifically called for discussions.

In an informal interaction with mediapersons, Mr. Chandy said while Congress workers in Kerala were pained by the high command's decision to let those who broke party discipline go scot free, they had accepted it in view of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Also, he sought to underscore the fact that the `A' group was a disciplined lot which had always accepted the high command's decision.

As for the former KPCC president, K. Muraleedharan's apprehension that the `A' faction would sabotage his election to the Assembly, Mr. Chandy said such fears were misplaced as "we are disciplined party workers who always go by the high command's decision.'' About speculation of Mr. Muraleedharan's sister, Padmaja Venugopal, contesting the Lok Sabha elections, he said a decision was yet to be taken and the party had an established mechanism to process candidatures.

In similar vein was his response to questions about the Kerala Congress(B) and Kerala Congress(Jacob) demanding a Lok Sabha seat. Such decisions, he said, would be taken by the UDF while confirming that he had received formal requests for a Lok Sabha seat from Kerala Congress(B) and the JSS. As to when the UDF would meet to discuss this issue of seat-sharing between the allies, he said a date would be fixed after the Congress central leadership appointed a KPCC president. While conceding that the most likely appointment of Mr. Thankachan as KPCC president would put three key posts - the other two being that of Chief Minister and the UDF convenor-- in Christian hands, he said party workers would not contest his elevation to the office on this count as it would only be a temporary arrangement.

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