KPCC President Sunny Joseph on Saturday said that discussions regarding the selection of the next Chief Minister for Kerala "will begin in the evening," as internal consultations within the party and alliance continue.
Talking to reporters, he said the meetings have not yet commenced and are scheduled to begin later in the day.
"The meetings will begin only in the evening. I had noticed all the demonstrations. When I arrived yesterday, I received a warm welcome," Joseph said.
Voicing the same opinions, Senior Congress leader and MLA-elect K Muraleedharan said the party high command was likely to take a final decision on Kerala's next CM within 24 hours.
The UDF's sweeping Assembly poll victory in Kerala has triggered a wave of lobbying and demonstrations by the supporters of senior leaders V D Satheesan, Ramesh Chennithala and K C Venugopal, urging the Congress leadership to select the respective leaders as the new CM.
"The information from Delhi is that discussions on the chief ministerial candidate will be completed within 24 hours," Muraleedharan told reporters.
Acknowledging public fervour, he emphasised that flex boards and marches alone would not determine the leadership.
He added that the views of MLAs and coalition partners would also be considered by the Congress leadership.
"I will not publicly reveal what I told the high command representatives. I have conveyed the sentiments of the people of my constituency. The opinions expressed by the people were clearly communicated to them.
"A decision will come at the appropriate time. Seniority is not the sole criterion while selecting the chief minister. The party has not always followed that yardstick," he said.
According to Muraleedharan, the opinion of the majority of MLAs and coalition partners would also be crucial as the Congress-led UDF was not a single-party government.
"The views of coalition partners also have to be considered naturally. This is a coalition government," he added.
Muraleedharan's remarks came amid intensifying public campaigns in several parts of the state backing Satheesan for the top post following the Congress-led UDF's massive victory in the Assembly elections.
Apart from widespread flex boards and posters supporting Satheesan, demonstrations and road shows by party workers seeking his elevation as chief minister have also been reported from various districts.
At the same time, flex boards backing senior Congress leaders K C Venugopal and Ramesh Chennithala for the chief minister's post have surfaced in several places, reflecting growing pressure within different sections of the party ahead of the high command's final decision.
The two Congress observers, appointed by the party leadership to seek the opinion of newly-elected MLAs, on Friday submitted their report to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and urged the high command to take a final call on the chief ministerial candidate.
The focus has now shifted to the national capital, where the Congress leadership has summoned senior Kerala leaders for discussions on government formation.
Leaders, including V D Satheesan, senior leader Ramesh Chennithala and KPCC president Sunny Joseph, reached Delhi on Friday night for talks with the party leadership regarding government formation and the leadership issue.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)