The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : NCP to vacate panel post

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 03, 2007
ePaper

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

NCP to vacate panel post

Special Correspondent

Council party a divided house over return to Congress

NCP has eight members in the council
CPI(M) likely to take over the post

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) is likely to vacate the chairmanship of the Standing Committee on Taxes and Appeals in the City Corporation. The NCP members in the Corporation Council are sharply divided on the issue of veteran leader K. Karunakaran’s imminent return to the Congress.

The eight members of the party in the council is facing a clean split on the issue, with one half backing Mr. Karunakaran and the other deciding to maintain status quo. All the NCP members were elected to the council on Democratic Indira Congress(K) tickets.

The NCP currently holds the chairmanship of the committee under a post-electoral understanding between the Left Democratic Front and the erstwhile DIC(K) which later merged with the NCP. Committee chairman K. Maheswaran Nair, who was the United Democratic Front floor leader in the previous council, had quit the Congress when the faction led by Mr. Karunakaran broke away to form the DIC(K).

A staunch Karunakaran loyalist, Mr. Nair is set to follow his leader back to the Congress ranks. He admitted that the NCP council party was facing a split on the issue. Asked about vacating the chairmanship of the taxes committee, he said the decision would be taken after consultations with his party colleagues. Mr. Nair declined to comment on what positions the NCP members would be offered on their return to the Opposition benches in the Council.

Asked about the attitude to the LDF, he said, “We will adopt a critical but not hostile stand to the ruling front.” Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the major constituent of the LDF is likely to take over the post of chairmanship to be vacated by the NCP. “There is no question of handing it over to any of our coalition partners,” says a senior party leader.

This would be the second mid-term change in leadership of the standing committees since the LDF was returned to power in the elections to the Corporation Council in 2005. Last month, the Kerala Congress(J) had vacated the chairmanship of the Town Planning Committee to make way for Janata Dal nominee P. Harikumar. The transfer of power was based on a post-poll power-sharing agreement among the LDF partners.

The Congress(S) has staked claim to the post of chairman of the Taxes committee. The KC(J) had also demanded a change in the chairmanship of the taxes committee, pointing out that the seat was allotted to the erstwhile DIC(K).

The CPI(M) chairs four of the seven standing committees in the Corporation. The CPI, Janata Dal and the NCP head one each. The power-sharing agreement was finalised by the LDF on the basis of the strength of the constituent parties in the council. While the CPI(M) has 50 councillors, the CPI has nine. The JD and KC(J) have three each and the RSP and the Congress(S) one each. The NCP has eight seats.

LDF sources said another major shuffle was likely soon after the internal elections in the CPI(M). There were signals that the elections to local units would disturb the equations of power within the party. This, the LDF leaders said, was likely to result in a total overhaul in the chairmanship of the standing committees currently held by the party.

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

Kerala