THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: K Sudhakaran, MP, who took over office as the new state Congress president on Wednesday wasted no time in announcing his combative style of politics. Addressing the Congressmen at the Indira Bhavan here, he took the allegations head on and said it was Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who sought the support of the RSS and not him. Though the central Congress leadership had appointed Sudhakaran on June 8, he decided to take charge after meeting senior party leaders in person.
Energised by the gathering of party workers, Sudhakaran said Pinarayi, who has disowned the Left ideologies to get the votes from the BJP, have no right to criticise him. “The CPM say the the new state Congress president is communal. This shows they fear an invigorated Congress. People know that Pinarayi got back to power by getting RSS votes. The CPM, which had disowned churches and temples, are now seeking appease them. My pledge is that we will come back stronger in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. If all of you are with me in this pursuit, we can reach our destination,” said Sudhakaran to a loud round of applause.
He also urged the party activists to work relentlessly for the next five years to strengthen the party at the local level.The three working presidents, Kodikunnil Suresh, MP, and MLAs P T Thomas and T Siddique also took charge on Wednesday.Opposition Leader V D Satheesan said the Congress should form a new working style that with social activities and humanitarian gestures. Satheesan said the party would bounce back with the expertise and the rich experience of the senior leaders and the enthusiasm and vigor of the youth. “People cast their votes not looking at the leaders, but at party workers. They look for those whocome to their help in need. We must overcome the wrong notion that the Congress is a crowd through systematic work by enhancing our base,” said Satheesan.
Outgoing state Congress president Mullappally Ramachandran went down memory lane and exuded confidence that in no time the Congress could bounce back. Telling the party workers that the minority community should return to the Congress fold, Mullappally said only a secular party like Congress can do wonders.
Tariq Anwar, national general secretary in charge of the state, opined that under the Narendra Modi regime, the country is going in a wrong direction. Later, Sudhakaran met several party workers in his office room who came to greet him with tricolor flags until evening. He is expected to leave soon for New Delhi to meet the Congress high command, where he will seek their permission to revamp the organisation.On his return, Sudhakaran is expected to take the guidelines before the high-powered political affairs committee and have them ratified.