New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 28 (IANS) After a marathon meeting of Kerala Congress leaders with the party high command in New Delhi, the party decided that K. Sudhakaran will continue to head the party’s unit in the state with a clear focus on winning the next year’s Assembly elections.
The state leaders were called to Delhi to discuss the alleged rift between the state leaders and develop a road map ahead of the next year’s Assembly elections. The meeting was held at Indira Bhawan, the Congress’s new headquarters in New Delhi.
“Congress President @kharge, along with LoP @RahulGandhi and Congress General Secretary (Org) @kcvenugopalmp, chaired a crucial meeting to discuss matters related to Kerala. Senior leaders from the Kerala Congress were also present at the meeting,” Congress wrote on X.
Sources said that the party high command has also issued a stern warning to the state not to discuss the internal matter of the party, like the disagreements in the public or with the media.
“It was unfortunate that the media created an issue of my ouster which was not properly defended by the state unit of the party. I have no differences with Kerala Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan,” said an emotional Sudhakaran.
Meanwhile, soon after the meeting, K. Venugopal told the reporters that this meeting will go down as the best ever that the party has had with all the top Kerala party leaders.
“Change is inevitable in Kerala. Congress has built the development paradigm and welfare model of Kerala, and we will do everything possible to bring our UDF to power. Next year, people will defeat both the oppressive and communal fronts in the state. We held a meeting of @INCKerala leaders where we deliberated on our political strategy and the future of the state,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge wrote on X.
The internal rift between the state unit was triggered after the proposed leadership change and an interview given by Shashi Tharoor in which he praised PM Modi’s US visit and governance of the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
However, during the meeting, Tharoor pointed out that his interview was grossly misquoted by the media.
“I will be with Congress always. The media misquoted my interview. We will work for the party and try to win the next year’s Assembly elections,” Tharoor said after the meeting.
Meanwhile, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi said that he has got reports from the grassroots in Kerala.
“It does not augur well for the Congress that when the entire country is looking towards UDF to return back and give good governance to the people of Kerala,” the LoP said.
The meeting ended with the high command instructing the state unit to prepare a road map for the upcoming local body polls and the 2026 Assembly elections.
–IANS
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