THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Slowly coming to terms with the big blow handed out by the KC(M), the Congress leadership began to fight back and hold the ground.
Former CM Oommen Chandy, who had remained steadfast in supporting KC(M) supremo K M Mani, even risking the stakes of the UDF government when the latter was bogged down in the Bar scam, described the volte face as political deceit. “Even when the KC had left the UDF fold, the Congress had shown the courtesy to honour Mani. Through the current decision, Mani has closed the doors for a re-entry to the UDF,’’ Chandy said.
KPCC president M M Hassan said, ‘‘By pulling out from a political understanding reached for Kottayam district panchayat president polls, Mani has cheated us. Jose Mani is behind all the developments.”
According to K C Joseph, Congress parliamentary party deputy leader, Mani displayed political indecency by violating a political understanding between the UDF and KC(M) in and outside the Assembly.
Congress parliamentary party secretary P T Thomas suspects Mani’s search for shades of Red
as part of a deal with the CPM and CM Pinarayi Vijayan to ensure he comes out of the Bar case unscathed.