KOCHI:C N Mohanan, CPM state committee member and GCDA chairman, has been made the party's new district secretary. The decision to pick Mohanan, a staunch supporter of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, came at the CPM district committee meeting on Wednesday attended by the party's state chief Kodiyeri Balakrishnan and outgoing district secretary P Rajeev.
The 56-year-old Mohanan started his public life through student politics. He later served as the DYFI's state chief, DYFI all-India vice-president and CPM's Kolenchery area secretary. He has been a CPM district committee member since 1995 and a member of the state committee from 2012.He graduated from St Peter's College Kolenchery, before reading law at the Government Law College, Thiruvananthapuram.
Following his appointment, Mohanan will step down as the GCDA chief. A couple of names are doing the rounds with a decision expected in the next couple of weeks. CPM insiders say state committee member and former Kochi Mayor C M Dinesh has emerged as the front-runner. Mani incidentally served as Mayor from 2000-2005. Gopi Kottamurickal served as CPM's former district secretary too is in the fray.