The Hindu : Kerala News : Thennala, Chandy leave for Delhi

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 06, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Thennala, Chandy leave for Delhi

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, DEC. 5. The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president, Thennala Balakrishna Pillai, left for Delhi this afternoon and the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, left late this evening for discussions with the Congress high command on the political situation in the State.

Mr. Chandy has stated that his Delhi trip was to discuss matters connected with the development of the Thiruvananthapuram airport and Vallarpadam container terminal with the Union Ministers concerned.

However, political circles feel that a discussion on the Kunhalikutty issue with the Congress leadership is high on the agenda. The law and order situation, including the attack on mediapersons, had raised concerns in Delhi.

Youth Congress threat

Pressure from within the Congress for the removal of the Industries Minister, P.K. Kunhalikutty, mounted today with the Youth Congress State president, K. P. Anil Kumar, threatening the possibility of an agitation over the issue.

He said that the issue could not settled by nothing short of the resignation of Mr. Kunhalikutty.

The reasons for the key witness of the ice-cream parlour sex racket case, Rejina, changing her version should also be probed. It was only a few days ago that the students' wing of the party had called for action against the Minister.

Hunger strike

The Left Democratic Front is stepping up its agitation for the ouster of Mr. Kunhalikutty with the Opposition members of the State Assembly planning a hunger strike in front of the Secretariat on Tuesday.

While Mr. Kunhalikutty maintained that no investigation is needed into his involvement in the eight-year-old case, as courts had dismissed the demand for a CBI enquiry, Mr. Chandy, had been saying that the law would take its course. He had also suggested that there was no legal case to warrant Mr. Kunhalikutty's removal from the Cabinet.

However, the high command felt that it was high time that the matter was settled.

This implies that it does not fully agree with Mr. Chandy's stand.

The high command had given its green signal for the replacement of A. K. Antony and Congress Ministers with a view to improving the electoral prospects of the United Democratic Front (UDF) in the State. Some Congressmen feel that the Kunhalikutty issue was damaging the prospects of the party further.

They recall that the Muslim League had pressed for Mr. Antony's removal on the ground that the UDF could not win the next election with Mr. Antony in the Chief Minister's chair. The same applies for Mr. Kunhalikutty now.

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

Kerala

News Update

Stories in this Section