Just hours after the Congress party proposed him for the post of the leader of opposition in the Kerala State Assembly, former Home Minister and leader of the I-faction in the Congress Ramesh Chennithala has claimed that the era of group rivalries is over in his party.
Referring to a statement by former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy that he did not want to be the Leader of the Opposition, Chennithala said that Chandy was signalling the end of factionalism in the party. Chandy has sent out a new message to the party workers, he added.
There was confusion in the Congress over the selection of the Leader of the Opposition, after both Chandy and Chennithala got elected back to the Assembly. Both leaders represent two formidable factions in the Congress in Kerala. In a show that everything was fine in the party, Chandy proposed the name of Chennithala for the post of the Leader of the Opposition on Sunday.
Even though Chennithala declared the war ended, reports suggest that group rivalries are far from over. K Muraleedharan, a powerful leader in the Congress, who was widely tipped for the post of the Leader of Opposition, is not happy about the decision. He had raised his objection and gave a letter to Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president VM Sudheeran conveying his displeasure. He initially stayed away from the Parliamentary Party meeting of the Congress on Sunday afternoon. But later, Sudheeran persuaded him to attend the meeting. There are reports that AICC secretary Deepak Babaria, who is in charge of the party in Kerala, also expressed displeasure in the selection of Chennithala and opined that a new face should have been given an opportunity.
Though Muraleedharan is silent now, the Congress insiders fear that the son of former Chief Minister K Karunakaran will break his silence at an opportune moment.
