KPCC blames it on ‘other parties’

KOZHIKODE: Behind the scene manipulations by a political party in New Delhi resulted in the delay in announcement of the candidature of Rahul Gandhi from the Wayanad Parliament constituency, said KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran here on Friday.

He was hinting at the excessive role allegedly played by the CPM at New Delhi against the candidature of Mr Gandhi from the state.

More details on the “untoward moves” would be revealed in the coming days, he added. Some political parties are afraid of the presence of Mr Gandhi on the political scenario in the state, he claimed.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan are continuing with their blind anti-Congress mindset, he said, adding that the delay in announcing the candidature will not affect the campaign in anyway as he expressed confidence in the success of the UDF candidate in Wayanad.

It may be recalled that even the Congress leader Oommen Chandy who had first revealed the KPCC move to demand Mr Gandhi to contest from the state, had also backed out from the claims on Thursday. Mr Chandy had said that he never announced that Mr Gandhi would contest from the state. KPCC only joined the chorus when Congress leaderships of states like Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were approaching Rahul Gandhi to contest from a safe seat in their respective states, he added.   

However, the Congress leadership in Wayanad district is still hopeful that Mr Gandhi will contest from the constituency. The DCC still hopes that Mr Gandhi will announce his candidature at the last moment. But what worries the DCC is the fact that if Mr Gandhi is not coming, it would affect the election results in entire state. His absence from the contest in the state will drain the morale of workers, fears the DCC leadership.