Rahul meets senior Cong leaders from Kerala; decision on CM set to come today

COngress leader Rahul indira gandhi met senior company leaders from Kerala on tues to terminate the logjam o'er selecting the United Democratic Front (UDF) chief minister, over a week after the alliance won the recently held state polls, according to party leaders aware of the development.A senior leader who attended the meeting said a decision on the new chief minister will be made on Wednesday.Six of the nine leaders who attended the meeting supported Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal’s candidature for chief minister (CM), the leaders said. Two leaders backed senior Kerala Congress leader and MLA from Paravur, VD Satheesan; one leader remained neutral.Ramesh Chennithala, Congress leader and MLA from Haripad, is the other contender for the post.The Congress-led UDF returned to power in Kerala with a decisive mandate last week, winning 102 of the 140 Assembly seats. The incumbent CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) was reduced to 35 seats.Among those who attended the meeting were former Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) presidents—K Muraleedharan, V M Sudheeran, K Sudhakaran and M M Hassan.Gandhi also met All-India Congress Committee (AICC) disciplinary committee chairman, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, and KPCC working presidents, A P Anilkumar, P C Vishnunath and Shafi Parambil. A former KPCC chief Mullapally Ramachandram was invited but could not attend the meeting.According to two Congress leaders aware of the details, Muraleedharan and Sudheeran favoured Satheesan, the outgoing leader of the opposition in the Kerala assembly, and insisted that the state’s public sentiment should be considered when choosing the CM’s post.Hassan, according to the second leader, didn’t reveal his choice but told Gandhi he will support whoever becomes the chief minister. Later, Hassan told the media: “The Congress party will decide the chief minister candidate and not (IU) Muslim League.” The comments assume importance as IUML is known to have favoured Satheesan over Venugopal.The working presidents and Radhakrishnan backed Venugopal. The first Congress leader told HT that the decision to consult former KPCC chiefs and working presidents was made to “garner support for Venugopal.” These leaders had earlier expressed confidence in Venugopal when the two observers -- Mukul Wasnik and Ajay Maken --went to Kerala to gauge the mood of the Congress lawmakers and leaders.Gandhi enquired about the protests held by Congress workers over the CM’s post. “He wanted to know in details about the protests and who organised these activities. He also asked all the leaders to give him a formula to end the crisis and asked them if there was any force or influence on MLAs,” said one of the leaders quoted above.IUML lawmaker ET Md Bahseer, a key constituent of the UDF, told HT on Tuesday that “We have told the Congress to take into account the public sentiments and how UDF supporters might react. We have also said that a leader who has mass support should be made the CM,” indicating support for Satheesan.Congress leader K. Muraleedharan said in Thiruvananthapuram that “Satisfied with my discussions with party leader Rahul Gandhi. The final decision will come this evening or tomorrow morning.”IUML to hold key meet on WednesdayThe IUML, the second-largest partner within the UDF, has called for a key leadership meeting at Panakkad on Wednesday. The meeting is expected to discuss the party’s stand over the Congress’ CM choice as well as the repercussions of the delay in announcing the decision.P Abdul Hameed, IUML district secretary in Malappuram, had remarked on Monday that the delay in announcing the CM choice has ‘dimmed the sheen of the UDF victory’ across the state.“The situation has brought embarassment to the UDF. People have started to ask why they voted for the alliance,” he said.