KOTTAYAM: A day after senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala lashed out at the party's new state leadership for allegedly neglecting Oommen Chandy, the former Opposition leader appears to be getting alienated in the party as he failed to garner support from anyone, including Chandy.
While Chandy refused to comment on Chennithala's outburst, senior leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan came down heavily on the speech, alleging that it set off a second round of firing in the party at a time when the issues over the appointment of new DCC presidents have begun to subside.
Thiruvanchoor also warned "no one should take a stance using Oommen Chandy’s name as a cover". Going a step further, Thiruvanchoor said that Chennithala will have to repent in the future for his untimely statement.
Thiruvanchoor, who reiterated his allegiance to Chandy, added that people will not allow anyone to neglect Chandy. "If the issues were centred on a single point of neglecting Oommen Chandy, 99.99 per cent of Malayalis will respond that Chandy cannot be neglected," he said.
"Moreover, none of us will agree with any such negligence towards Chandy. I don't think anyone will question Chandy’s position in Indian politics. At the same time, I can’t agree with yesterday’s speech which was made in the name of Chandy, who has a clean image in politics," he added.
Thiruvanchoor also came out in support of Chandy by stating that he didn't believe that Chennithala’s outburst occurred with the knowledge of Chandy. At the same time, Thiruvanchoor also declared his solidarity with the new state leadership.
"I have great trust in Congress high command and the party’s new leadership in Kerala. They are capable of resolving any issue. The new combination led by VD Satheesan and K Sudhakaran is also capable of addressing the issues. They have the strong support of the High Command as well," Thiruvanchoor said.
Thiruvanchoor also accused Chennithala of using the occasion of the new Kottayam DCC president Nattakom Suresh taking charge as a platform to air his dissent. Earlier, speaking to reporters, Chandy expressed his willingness for talks with the high command representatives. Responding to a query, Chandy said he will cooperate if the high command and new PCC leadership took the initiative for talks.