The Hindu : Kerala News : UDF will win back Ernakulam: Thomas

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Apr 15, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

UDF will win back Ernakulam: Thomas

By K. Venkiteswaran

KOCHI, APRIL 14. "Discipline is a must, no one in the party, including Ministers are above law," said the Fisheries Minister, K.V. Thomas, here today.

Talking to The Hindu , the Minister said that the KPCC high-level committee had taken a decision that local body functionaries who got elected with "outside support" should not share the UDF podium during electioneering. The office-bearers, however, campaign on their own in their areas of influence for the success of the UDF candidates.

However, there had been some jarring notes and some acts of indiscipline had been noticed he said, referring to the stand-off between the KPCC acting president, P.P. Thankachan, and the Deputy Mayor-elect, P. S. Johny, which had tarnished the party's image.

Prof. Thomas said that these problems would be sorted out in "due course" and he did not agree with the view that it would have an impact on the UDF candidates in the four Lok Sabha constituencies of Thrissur, Mukundapuram, Ernakulam, and Muvattupuzha.

Prof. Thomas was confident that the UDF candidate in Ernakulam, Edward Edezhath, would win with a thumping majority. "We have to work hard to rope in the entire party machinery to have a well-oiled campaign. I do not see any hitch at present and am sure that everything would go on smoothly."

He said that Ernakulam would live up to its reputation of a strong UDF bastion and that it would wrest the seat from the LDF on May 10.

Asked about the slow pace of UDF campaign, Prof. Thomas pointed out that the unprecedented long time available for campaigning would wear out any political party however resourceful and cadre-based it might be.

He said that with the declaration of the elections, the Government was in a limbo, bureaucrats were busy with election work, and no developmental work could be announced. This can be an incumbency factor for those in power. It is, however, applicable for both the Centre and the State and hence would balance out, he said.

On the apprehension in some quarters that the ongoing tussle in the Congress vis-a-vis tie-ups with the CPI(M) at the local body level would affect the party, the Minister said that the party had made its stand very clear. While one cannot ask the office-bearers to relinquish their posts overnight, it was only fair on the part of the party to ask these people not to directly associate with the UDF campaign. However, he did not believe that "parallel conventions" were a solution to the problem. He said that the Congress as a party had diverse interests and people from various walks of life were its members.

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