AICC announces V D Satheesan as the ‘captain’ of Kerala, to assume office as CM

NEW DELHI: V D Satheesan has been named as the new chief minister of Kerala. The announcement was made in Delhi by Deepa Dasmunsi, the AICC general secretary in charge of Kerala, ending nearly ten days of political suspense. K C Venugopal, the AICC general secretary in charge of the organization, did not attend the press meet convened to announced the new chief minister. The swearing-in ceremony is likely to be held on Monday at the Central Stadium.

A decision on the chief minister was decided yesterday itself. Rahul Gandhi held a meeting with K C Venugopal for more than an hour this morning. Rahul also reportedly spoke over the phone with senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala for around thirty minutes before the official declaration. The chief minister's announcement was made after that. KC Venugopal announced that he accepts the high command decision. However, it is reported that Chennithala has expressed his opposition to the decision.

Although V D Satheesan helped the UDF achieve a historic victory in Kerala, and the majority of the MLAs supported KC Venugopal, the Congress leadership announced Satheesan as the chief minister, considering the general sentiment of the people of the state. Satheesan had the support of all the constituent parties. Former office bearers of the KPCC also supported Satheesan.

Despite winning a historic victory with 102 seats, the Congress leadership had been struggling for 10 days to find a chief minister. This created a deep resentment towards the Congress among the people. When KC Venugopal, Ramesh Chennithala and VD Satheesan staked their claim for the post of chief minister, the contest took to the streets. Flex boards, posters and banners were filled with support for the three. Demonstrations, protests and suicide attempts were also held.

After failing to name the candidate, AICC observers Ajay Maken and Mukul Wasnik met the MLAs. More MLAs also expressed support for KC. The opinions of the leaders of the allied parties were sought then. It is reported that the League took a strong stand for V D Satheesan. After receiving the report of the observers, the high command had summoned senior leaders of the state to Delhi to take a final decision. The party leadership took the decision after knowing their opinions.