Thiruvananthapuram: Days after voters handed the Congress a historic mandate in the Kerala Assembly polls, the party has slipped into a familiar dilemma over choosing a chief minister.
With AICC general secretary (organisation) K. C. Venugopal, Leader of Opposition V. D. Satheesan and senior leader Ramesh Chennithala all in contention, an intense behind-the-scenes battle has unfolded through internal consultations, lobbying by rival camps, street demonstrations and social media campaigns.
The party high command including AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, is set to pick the chief minister soon, a day after AICC-appointed observers Ajay Maken, who is the AICC treasurer, and AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik held one-on-one meetings with elected MLAs and Congress allies.
According to Congress sources, AICC leader Venugopal has the support of over 40 of the total 63 Congress MLAs, which some attribute to his greater influence in candidate selection. This had already made the factional alignments visible before the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Thursday.
For example, Kannur MP and senior leader K. Sudhakaran, who had earlier been seen as a CM aspirant, issued a facebook post on 15 April, days after the voting concluded praising Venugopal’s role in the Congress campaign, adding that the latter’s leadership was essential for the state. This was followed by similar posts by many MLA candidates, endorsing Venugopal directly and indirectly.
An image published by a newspaper on Friday, showing Mukul Wasnik holding the document containing MLAs’ suggestions, appeared to indicate that Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph had also backed Venugopal, sparking a controversy.
Both Joseph and Wasnik have questioned the authenticity of the image. Meanwhile, many Congress supporters have held demonstrations demanding V. D. Satheesan be made the chief minister, while another section has projected Chennithala as CM.
Key Congress allies including Kerala Congress (Joseph) and IUML have expressed support for Satheesan.
“We have expressed our opinion that AICC should decide on the chief minister based on the ground support. Let them decide now. Once they announce, we will voice our opinion again,” an IUML leader told ThePrint.
An AICC functionary involved in the process told ThePrint that the party high command is considering the report of the AICC observers, adding that the party is currently not considering creating the post of deputy chief minister to resolve the tussle.
Choosing Venugopal will necessitate two elections in the state, an Assembly bypoll to ensure his election to the Kerala Assembly, along with the Lok Sabha by-election in Alappuzha, the constituency currently represented by the AICC leader, which will mark a contradiction from its earlier stance. After multiple MPs including Sudhakaran expressed interest in contesting Assembly polls, the Congress had, in the run-up to the polls, announced that it would not field MPs in state polls.
State-based political analyst K. P. Sethunath said Congress decisions are mostly taken by the Gandhi family, like it had for Rajasthan in the past.
In the 2018 Rajasthan Assembly polls, many Congress supporters and functionaries had projected Sachin Pilot as the young Congress CM face, with the party high command choosing Ashok Gehlot due to his seniority and administrative experience. Similar scenes unfolded in the same year in Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, when the Congress faced the elections without announcing a chief minister face, after which Kamal Nath was chosen over popular mass leader Jyotiraditya Scindia.
“The so-called process is a mockery of democracy. 63 MLAs have decided, but they are saying that the final decision is with Kharge. Even if you look at the situation, it will just show who all are subservient, and who are not. It just shows what power blocks are functioning,” Sethunath said.
KC vs VD vs RC: battle on paper and on streets
Hailing from Kannur, Venugopal is the current Lok Sabha MP from Alappuzha. Considered a loyalist of Rahul Gandhi, the leader’s closeness to the Gandhi family is considered beneficial for him. Joining politics through student-led organisations, Venugopal was first elected to the Kerala Assembly from Alappuzha in 1996, representing it till 2006. In the 2009 and 2014 general elections, Venugopal was elected from the Alappuzha Lok Sabha constituency, which also saw his tenure as a Union minister under the Manmohan Singh government for a brief period.
In April 2017, he was appointed general secretary of the AICC, and later nominated to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan in June 2020. After his 2024 victory, the leader has been visible in Kerala, involved in organisational matters, leading to a perception that he was eyeing the CM post.
If Venugopal is appointed CM, it will lead to a bypoll in Alappuzha where the BJP also has significant vote base.
However, the situation is complicated, with many within the Congress and outside believing the party’s victory was driven by a strong campaign led by V. D. Satheesan. The Leader of Opposition was the most visible face against the outgoing Pinarayi Vijayan government over the past few years. Several Congress functionaries ThePrint spoke to said the mandate in favour of the Congress was also a mandate for Satheesan. Some party leaders also argued that a bypoll could create a negative perception against the party.
However, a day after the CLP meeting, Satheesan’s supporters across the state have taken out demonstrations in districts including Ernakulam and Kannur demanding that the leader be made the chief minister, with the slogan: “Those who led the army, let them rule the land.”
ThePrint has also learned that mass emails expressing support for Satheesan have been sent to Rahul Gandhi’s office. Also thousands have commented made on Rahul Gandhi’s facebook page, in support of Satheesan.
Senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan told the media the decision will be announced by Sunday.
“This is usual in Congress’s democratic process. The party will be united once there is a decision. I have conveyed my opinion on voters’ sentiment in my constituency. But I will accept whoever is announced by the party. I expect the high command decision will be made based on public sentiment,” he said.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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