Thiruvananthapuram, April 17 (IANS) A brewing leadership tussle within the Congress over the Chief Minister’s post has cast a shadow over the UDF camp in Kerala, prompting concern among allies and close monitoring by the party high command.

The internal friction, surfacing even before the Assembly election results due on May 4, has triggered unease within the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a key UDF partner.

League leaders are learnt to be dissatisfied with the public sparring, viewing it as damaging to the coalition’s credibility.

Senior functionaries believe the Congress leadership itself has fuelled the controversy through open statements and subtle campaigns.

There is also a move within the League to seek high command intervention if such public positioning continues.

For now, the party has chosen to remain neutral, deciding to express its opinion only if formally consulted by the Congress party.

Within the Congress, the names of V.D. Satheesan, Ramesh Chennithala and K.C. Venugopal have emerged as principal contenders.

Supporters of these leaders have already engaged in aggressive poster and comment wars on social media, a development senior leaders warn could dent the party’s image.

Veteran Congress MP M.K. Raghavan added a note of criticism, calling it strange that the debate originated from Ernakulam, where the district party president first raised the issue.

He termed the discussion unnecessary at this stage, especially ahead of the vote count.

Alarmed by the escalating rhetoric, the Congress high command has stepped in.

Party president Mallikarjuna Kharge has held telephonic consultations with senior Kerala leaders to assess the situation.

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) has issued strict instructions barring public comments on the Chief Minister’s post until the results are declared.

KPCC president Sunny Joseph and AICC general secretary in charge of Kerala, Deepa Das Munshi, have reinforced the directive.

Despite these warnings, indications suggest that informal discussions and lobbying efforts have already begun, including among leaders based in Delhi.

However, the central leadership has made it clear that no moves should be made contrary to the high command’s final decision.

Following the declaration of results, high command representatives are expected to visit Kerala to seek the views of newly elected MLAs.

The final call on the Chief Minister will be taken only after this consultative process, underscoring the leadership’s attempt to contain factionalism and project unity at a crucial political juncture.

On Friday, the presence of Chennithala in the national capital raised eyebrows, and he was quick to point out that his Delhi visit need not be linked to the social media row about the next chief minister.

–IANS

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