Kerala CM decision looms as Congress weighs 3 major contenders - Who are they?
Three names that have emerged as top chief minister contenders since May 4 are senior leader Ramesh Chennithala, former Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan, and AICC general secretary KC Venugopal.
As the contest among senior leaders of Congress for the Kerala chief minister post intensifies, All India Congress Committee (AICC) observers met party MLAs and UDF allies to take their opinion on the leadership. Three names that have emerged as top chief minister contenders since the 4 May election results are senior leader Ramesh Chennithala, former Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan, and AICC general secretary KC Venugopal.
Who are they?
VD Satheesan
Ahead of the Kerala Assembly election, VD Satheesan had made a bold declaration – that he would bring the United Democratic Front (UDF) to power in Kerala – “If I am not able to bring the UDF back to power, I will retire from politics. I will go for political exile, he said.”
The landslide victory of the Congress-led UDF centred leadership within the alliance on figures such as VD Satheesan, who has been a prominent voice against the LDF government.
Quick answers to key questions
The three main contenders for the Chief Minister post in Kerala are senior leader Ramesh Chennithala, former Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan, and AICC general secretary KC Venugopal. Their names emerged after the Congress-led UDF's victory in the assembly elections.
VD Satheesan has been a Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly since 2001 and succeeded Ramesh Chennithala as the Leader of the Opposition after the 2021 elections. He had previously declared he would retire from politics if the UDF did not come to power.
KC Venugopal is a Member of Parliament from Alappuzha and is known for his proximity to Rahul Gandhi. Sources indicate a majority of party MLAs support him for the chief minister role, and he is reportedly using his influence with the party leadership.
Ramesh Chennithala has served as a Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly six times and was previously the Leader of the Opposition and state Home Minister. He stated that the Congress high command will make the final decision on leadership.
The Sarkaria Commission Report suggests that if a single party has an absolute majority, its leader should automatically be asked to become Chief Minister. If not, the governor should select a leader from pre-election alliances, then the largest single party, followed by post-election coalitions.
VD Satheesan has been a Member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly (MLA), representing Paravur Assembly constituency, since 2001. After his win in the 2021 elections, Satheesan succeeded Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala as the Leader of the Opposition.
After the result, VD Satheesan said, “There was anti-incumbency. We discussed a new era for future Kerala. We had credibility among the people. I had earlier said that 10 ministers will lose, and that is what happened.”
KC Venugopal
Kozhummal Chattadi (KC) Venugopal is a Member of Parliament (MP) from Alappuzha Lok Sabha constituency. Close to the Congress leadership and known for his proximity to Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal was also a Minister of State (MoS) for Civil Aviation & Ministry of Power when the UPA was in power.
He has also been a Rajya Sabha member.
Sources within the party say a majority of the party MLAs are in support of making KC Venugopal the chief minister. However, the public is favouring senior party leader VD Satheesan.
They said Venugopal is also keen on assuming the role of chief minister and is using his influence with the party leadership for the selection..
Ramesh Chennithala
Ramesh Chennithala is also in the race to become the chief minister. He has been a member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly six times.
He was the 10th Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Legislative Assembly and has also served the state as home minister when Oommen Chandy was the chief minister.
During the anti-CAA movement, he had shared the stage with caretaker chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Earlier, Chennithala had said, “The party will take a final decision on all these issues. In Kerala, we got a spectacular victory... Now, the other things will be decided by the Congress high command."
“There are several leaders in the Congress party, but whatever the high command decides, all the Congress leaders will accept it.”
Earlier, KC Venugopal and Ramesh Chennithala met Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi after the thumping victory in the assembly elections.
The UDF secured 102 seats out of the 140 constituencies in the state assembly election held on 9 April. The Congress won 63 seats.
(With agency inputs)
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