THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a major setback to the Congress state leadership, Sunil Kanugolu, the poll strategist who created wonders for the party in Karnataka Assembly election, opined that the organisational setup of the party is weak in Kerala. He said this while attending the high-powered political affairs committee (PAC) meeting at Indira Bhavan. He highlighted the Congress party’s inability to cash in on the anti-incumbency factor against Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government.
A second round meeting of all senior leaders was held later at Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan’s official residence, Cantonment House, to chalk out a strategy for the protest meetings to be launched against the LDF government.
At the PAC meeting which saw almost all Congress MPs attending it, Sunil Kanugolu urged them to focus more on their constituencies. Except for Wayanad, Thrissur and Kozhikode MPs — Rahul Gandhi, T N Prathapan and M K Raghavan— the remaining 12 Congress MPs attended the PAC meeting. It should be recalled that Sunil Kanugolu along with his team from ‘Mindshare Analytics’ had started their work in all 20 Lok Sabha constituencies months ago itself.
His team had initiated a serious study on poll aspects, the role played by sitting MPs, the current situation, social combination and the winning prospects following which he had urged all sitting Congress MPs to focus more on their constituencies. A senior leader told TNIE that the poll strategist was unhappy with the organisational set-up as the party has become weak at the ground level.
“Sunil Kanugolu wanted the Congress to oppose both the LDF and BJP governments alike in its protest meetings. In his speech, he highlighted the variation in Christian and Muslim votes in the 2021 Assembly election which should not happen in the coming Lok Sabha election. However, he exuded hope that the opposition seen against the BJP government would see the UDF garnering those votes,” said a senior PAC leader.
It was also decided at the meeting that Congress state president K Sudhakaran will kick off his Kerala Yatra in January. But whether Sudhakaran will undertake his yatra across all 140 Assembly constituencies or through the 282 block committees will be decided only at the office-bearers and 14 DCC presidents’ meeting being held at Indira Bhavan on Thursday. Sunil Kanugolu will be attending this meeting also. The party has also decided to hold a slew of meetings across the state when the LDF government will kick off its Jana Sadassu.