New Delhi, Feb 12 (IANS) The Congress high command on Thursday moved to firm up its organisational structure in Kerala ahead of the April–May Assembly elections, appointing senior leaders Ramesh Chennithala and Benny Behanan to head two key poll committees.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge approved the appointment of veteran legislator and Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Ramesh Chennithala as chairman of the campaign committee.

Senior Lok Sabha member Benny Behanan has been named chairman of the manifesto committee.

The twin appointments signal the party’s attempt to strike a balance between organisational experience and parliamentary visibility as it prepares for a high-stakes contest against the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and a resurgent BJP.

The campaign committee reflects a mix of national and state-level leaders.

Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor has been appointed co-chairman, lending national prominence and urban appeal to the campaign strategy.

Other members include Lok Sabha MPs Shafi Parambil and Hibi Eden, MLAs Roji M. John, C.R. Mahesh and Mathew Kuzhalnadan, along with former Lok Sabha member Remya Haridas, M. Liju and Deepthi Mary Varghese.

The manifesto committee, headed by Behanan, will include senior parliamentarians Kodikunnil Suresh and Dean Kuriakose from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha member Jebi Mather.

The composition indicates an emphasis on parliamentary experience and policy articulation as the party seeks to present a cohesive alternative vision for the state.

With organisational clarity now emerging, the Congress is expected to intensify its ground-level mobilisation and policy outreach in the coming weeks.

The leadership choices suggest a calibrated effort to consolidate factions within the Kerala unit while projecting a unified and strategically prepared front for the electoral battle ahead.

This announcement comes at a time when Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan has commenced a statewide yatra which, when it reaches the state capital on March 7, will have covered all 14 districts of the state.

–IANS

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