Special: A new power centre?

Thiruvananthapuram: While the Congress and UDF leadership are claiming that KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala's entry into the Cabinet will resolve all issues, political observers say Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will be a worried man from now on.

With Chennithala having the backing of the powerful ‘I' group, there is the possibility that another power centre emerging in the Government.

The reshuffle is also creating fresh trouble for the UDF with KC (B) chairman R. Balakrishna Pillai coming out openly against the leadership for not considering the re-entry of his son and former forest minister, K. B. Ganesh Kumar, into the cabinet.

The father-son duo can take heart from Chandy clarifying at a press meet today that a cabinet reshuffle will occur after the Parliamentary elections. He had added that the general view among the allies in the UDF is to have Kumar back in the fold.

"There will be more changes in the cabinet after the Parliament elections. It is an open minded approach towards Kumar's re-entry," said Chandy.

When asked whether the re-entry of a tainted minister like Kumar would dent the image of the UDF Government, Chandy replied that at the moment there are no cases against him and all these issues will be taken into consideration before he is re-inducted.

Sources close to M Chandy told DC that Chennithala was keen on becoming deputy chief minister when talks of cabinet revamping were going on, on Monday.

Union minister of defence, A. K. Antony, is aware of. When asked whether Chennithala would hold the second position in the cabinet, Chandy said, "Everyone is equal in the government. Among the equals, the chief minister's name is mentioned first, that's all…"

However, Muslim League leader and industries minister, P. K. Kunhalikutty, had rejected the proposal  outright, forcing Chandy not to seek KC (M) chairman K. M. Mani's opinion.

Ironically, it was the same Chennithala who had announced in New Delhi five months ago that he is not interested in joining Chandy's government and would prefer to lead the party in the general election.

Unlike the earlier incident when Chennithala was keen to join the Government as deputy chief minister, this time both Muslim League and KC (M) have welcomed the induction of Chennithala into the cabinet.

Kunhalikutty said that the induction was discussed with the League, and this was confirmed by Chandy later in the evening when he informed reporters that the Congress high command had approved hennithala's induction on December 27.

"The decision will bring more confidence to the Congress and the UDF. This will help to fortify the foundation of the UDF and is not a mere political formula," said Kunhalikutty.

While Mani also lent his support to Chennithala, he said a ministerial post for the latter is an internal matter of the Congress.

Political observer B. R. P. Bhaskar told Deccan Chronicle that it is very unlikely that two power centres will crop up with Chennithala's entry at this juncture.

"There will not be any issues between Chandy and Chennithala until the Lok Sabha elections. But if the Congress does not perform well on the electoral front, then they will blame each other and will have a fall-out," predicted Bhaskar.

However, KPCC spokesperson Pandalam Sudhakaran pointed out that there are already various power centres in the Government with UDF allies like Kunjalikutty and Mani as well as Chennithala running their own centres of power.

"All parties have individualities. The UDF itself is a consortium of various parties and there are several power centres in the name of allies. But I can assure you of one thing. If Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan has said that his tenure as Home Minister can be written in golden letters, then Chennithala's entry as Home Minister can be anticipated to be written in platinum words," said Sudhakaran.

Next:  Mullapally wants to be KPCC chief

Mullapally wants to be KPCC chief

Thiruvananthapuram: With Ramesh Chennithala being sworn in as home minister on New Year’s day, the race has begun for the post of Congress president in the State.

Though Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has said that he is not anxious about who becomes KPCC president, sources close to him reveal that the most favourable candidate is Speaker G. Karthikeyan.

But Union Minister of State for home affairs, Mullapally Ramachandran, has also thrown his hat in the ring, claiming that the Malabar region should be given adequate representation.

Chennithala is also keen to see Karthikeyan at the helm of the party as it will be like returning a favour since it was during Karthikeyan’s tenure as Youth Congress president that he was made the KSU president.

The general consensus among Congress leaders is in favour of Karthikeyan, but Mullapally hinted in Kochi, much to the surprise of many, that he could be interested.

“After C. K. Govindan Nair’s term as KPCC chief, KPCC has never got enough representation. So it is high time that the Malabar region gets it due,” Mullapally said.

Highly placed Congress sources told Deccan Chronicle that an option before the Congress leadership and AICC is to give the Vadakara Lok Sabha constituency to the Socialist Janata (Democratic) party in accordance with the long standing demand of its leader M. P. Veerendra Kumar.

A source close to Chandy said that Veerendra Kumar had held consultations with the Chief Minister on Monday evening at Cliff House before the ‘A’ group leaders were huddled there. However, Kumar denied having worked out any such formula.

“So far no discussions have taken place on allocation of seats for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In that case, no formula has been worked out as well,” Veerendra Kumar told Deccan Chronicle.

SNDP yogam general secretary Vellapally Nateshan has been clamouring for an Ezhava representation in the Congress party, which he said was under represented when they have 28 per cent representation in the state according to the latest census.

Next: LDF has reasons to worry

LDF has reasons to worry

Thiruvananthapuram: The CPM leaders may have termed KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala’s induction into the Cabinet as a ‘gimmick’ but it is likely to unite the Congress ahead of  the crucial Lok  Sabha elections.

It is no secret that a section of Congress workers was not happy with the manner in which Chandy was taking the government forward. It is also due to the pressure applied by the ‘I’ group that the high command ultimately prevailed over  the chief minister and ‘A’ group, who were totally opposed to handing over the home portfolio to Chennithala.

The Left parties are also aware of the fact that the NSS and SNDP  were unhappy with Chandy for the alleged neglect of majority community and for going out of the way to appease minority communities.

But Chennithala’s entry into the Cabinet seems to have mollified the NSS which had been demanding "key position" for Nair community in the Government. Even SNDP has welcomed the reshuffle.

Political observers say the current developments have created a favourable atmosphere for the UDF Government.

Moreover, the failure of LDF’s anti-solar agitation has only added to the strength of chief minister Oommen Chandy.

But according to CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan, cabinet reshuffle was part of Congress strategy to win at least one seat in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.  “That is  why  the party’s central leadership has taken the decision in a hurry,” he added.

He said the Congress attempt to revive its chances by resorting to such gimmicks would not help the party in any way.

CPM politburo member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan termed Ramesh Chennithala's induction into the Ministry as a “clever move” by Chandy. 

“A survey conducted by an agency has revealed that Congress will not be able to win even a single seat in LS polls. So Chandy has taken Chennithala on board to put half the blame on him for the impending defeat,” he added.