‘Operation Lotus’ in Mattathur: DCC for no compromise; Fight intensifies in party

THRISSUR: The DCC will initiate disqualification proceedings against the Congress members who got power with the support of BJP in Mattathur Panchayat Administrative Committee elections. DCC President Joseph Tajet said that legal proceedings will be initiated to disqualify them within ten days. Meantime, the rebels are adamant that lapses from the side of the leadership drove them to defect to the BJP.

The DCC also demanded that the president and vice president, who took office with the support of the BJP in Mattathur, should resign immediately. Tajet said that if they resign within ten days, they are ready to review the present measures taken against the members. He said that if they are not ready to resign, legal proceedings will be initiated to disqualify them under the Anti-Defection Act.

The ten members who defected have taken a stand that accuses the party and the DCC. Their justification is that they accepted the support of the BJP to prevent the LDF from getting power after the CPM hijacked Congress rebel K R Ouseph.

The defectors put forward a condition that they will resign the vice-presidential post if the ten expelled panchayat members and two office bearers are reinstated. However, they are of the stand that they will not resign the president’s post. The defectors also allege that the DCC chairman giving a whip is a lie.

The dramatic political moves in Mattathur have created a huge impact on the Thrissur Congress. Alleging that the Congress-BJP inner current is active, the LDF has decided to use the 'Mattathur model' as a political weapon in the upcoming elections.

There is a strong allegation within the party that the DCC has made serious lapses, from the selection of candidates to identifying the possibilities of coup. In the 21-member panchayat, the LDF has ten, Congress eight, BJP four and two independents. The Congress members, who secured BJP support through proper planning, have put their party in a fix.

Presently, the governance crisis in Mattathur is likely to move to the court and the Election Commission in the coming days. Similarly, Congress workers who voted for the BJP in Paralam have been suspended from the party's primary membership.