Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 15 (IANS) A crucial steering committee meeting of the Kerala Congress(Mani) led by Rajya Sabha MP Jose K. Mani will be held in Kottayam on Friday, once again placing the spotlight on a party whose political journey has been defined by splits, realignments and an unerring instinct for survival.

Formed in 1964, the Kerala Congress has, over the decades, lived up to the often quoted political description that it “grows as it splits and splits as it grows”.

Today, six factions of the party operate within Kerala’s two dominant political fronts — the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).

Together, they command nine legislators, ensuring that despite chronic fragmentation, the party continues to matter in coalition arithmetic.

The Kottayam meeting has assumed added significance amid persistent speculation over whether the Jose K. Mani-led faction may reconsider its place in the LDF ahead of the April-May Assembly elections.

While Jose Mani has categorically ruled out any move away from the Left, political circles remain unconvinced, pointing to growing unease within the party’s ranks.

A section of leaders and workers believes the Left Front may be heading for an electoral setback and fears that remaining with a weakened front could relegate the party to the margins.

For many at the grassroots, being in the opposition is viewed as politically and organisationally debilitating.

With what is being seen as prolonged indecision on the part of Jose Mani, the Congress leadership has made it clear that it will no longer go behind any party in search of alliances, signalling a tougher stance as pre-poll negotiations gather momentum.

Meanwhile, CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said on Thursday that he would choose to believe Jose Mani’s public assurance that the party would not leave the Left Front, even as observers note that such assurances have, in the past, not always precluded later political shifts.

Historically, Kerala Congress factions have crossed political fronts with ease whenever power equations demanded it.

Ideological consistency has often taken a back seat, with proximity to power emerging as the overriding consideration.

The Kottayam meeting, therefore, is being closely watched not for dramatic announcements but for subtle signals — once again reinforcing the idea that in Kerala’s coalition politics, survival and power frequently trump ideology.

–IANS

sg/dpb