THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Giving a dramatic twist to the ongoing melodrama over Congress candidate selection, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has offered to stay away from the fray, putting an idealist V M Sudheeran on tenterhooks. With Chandy stating that he would not contest if facing allegations was a criterion to exclude anyone, the situation has taken an unexpected turn. An idealist Sudheeran and pragmatic Chandy stuck to their guns on Wednesday too. With both leaders uncompromising, the high command interfered, with AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi holding separate discussions with both the leaders for arriving at a formula. However, the leaders refused to budge from their stand.
Though Sudheeran insisted on excluding tainted leaders from the list, Chandy is not willing to toe the line. He’s learnt to have said in the screening committee that if facing allegations was the criterion, it was applicable to him also as he had faced more allegations than any of the ministers. Rejecting Sudheeran’s contention that those who had contested many times should be out of race, he stated that he had been in the electoral fray for many years.
Chandy, who was expected to reach Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday reportedly cancelled his trip in the last minute. It is learnt that he would only return after finalising the candidates, which would be taken up at the screening committee on Friday. Sources said that Chandy had met senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mukul Wasnik, general secretary in charge of the party’s affairs in Kerala, and conveyed his displeasure against Sudheeran. Already two rounds of screening committee meetings were held. The trouble started after Sudheeran opposed the candidature of ministers K Babu, Adoor Prakash, K C Joseph and MLAs Benny Behnan and A T George.
Meanwhile, Sudheeran, who also held talks with senior leader A K Antony, said in Delhi that as of now there was no need to change his stand. ‘’During elections certain issues could come up and there is nothing unusual in all these. A decision will be taken after holding talks on sitting MLAs contesting polls,’’ he said.
Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala, who also held discussions with Rahul Gandhi, hoped that the list would be finalised at the election committee under Congress president Sonia Gandhi. K Muraleedharan, who is also in Delhi, stated that allegations could be levelled against any leader, but were not yet been proved, hinting that the leaders could find a place in the list.
Sudheeran Isolated
With V M Sudheeran adamant on his stand, both Oommen Chandy and Ramesh Chennithala factions have united. At the screening committee, Sudheeran was isolated. Meanwhile, Sudheeran is facing heat for fighting for the nomination of Sharatchandra Prasaad, who is accused in a cheating case involving Rs 3.5 crore.
