A. K. Antony rues rise in group politics within Congress

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Senior Congress leader A. K. Antony feels that groupism has intensified in the top echelons of the party after Mr V.M. Sudheeran took over as PCC president early this year, although party workers say that  groupism is not rampant now.  But Mr Sudheeran has  lost a golden opportunity to rebuild the organisation after the party fared well in the  Lok Sabha elections in the state, said a Congress leader.

Mr Antony, who was here for over  two weeks following a surgery, had first-hand information about the party  affairs, especially after the UDF decision to impose prohibition  in a phased manner. He had also restrained group leaders from making public statements although his advice went unheeded.  Source close to Mr Antony said that he believed that the leaders would put aside the differences as Mr Sudheeran was not part of any group.

“Antony feels that Sudheeran should have curtailed the group activities in the state. Instead of strengthening the party cadre, he was making comments with no end result,”  said the Congress leader. Reports from New Delhi say that Mr Mukul Wasnik, AICC general secretary in charge of the state, had recently talked to Mr Sudheeran about his strained equations  the government and that he was asked to be more accommodative to its policies.

“When the Congress was holding power at the centre, there were differences of opinion between the UPA government and the AICC leadership. But a consensus was always reached. In the case of KPCC, Sudheeran has only aggravated the situation,”  said  the leader.