K Sudhakaran's crucial support turned decisive; Sunny Vakeel to helm affairs in KPCC

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Sunny Joseph succeeding K Sudhakaran is not new. When K Sudhakaran stepped down as DCC president in 2001, it was Sunny Joseph, out of all people, who replaced the Kannur bigwig.

AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi directly informed K Sudhakaran that he was being removed from the post of KPCC President.

A big decision was to be made between the names Anto Antony and Sunny Joseph while reports suggest that the crucial support Sunny Joseph received from K Sudhakaran resolved the long-standing crisis for the high command.

The Peravoor MLA’s tenure as DCC chairman was noteworthy, which put him as a top contender for the KPCC president post.

Despite long relinquishing his profession as a lawyer, many within Congress still fondly address him as ‘Sunny Vakeel’. After a two-decade-long career as a lawyer, he switched to active politics full-time. He started as a KSU activist. Although his family's roots are in Thodupuzha in the Idukki district, they later migrated to Iritty, a hilly region in the Kannur district.

Sunny has also served as a member of the Calicut University Syndicate and as the president of the Ulikkal Service Cooperative Bank, Thalassery Agricultural Development Bank, Mattannur Bar Association, and Iritty Education Society.

Sunny Joseph has been a member of the assembly from Peravoor, a hilly constituency in Kannur district, since 2011.