The trustworthiness of the Congress as leader of Kerala’s ruling UDF over its move to induct State party president Ramesh Chennithala into the Cabinet as Deputy Chief Minister is now being questioned by allies even as the NSS, outfit of Hindu upper caste Nairs, unleashed scathing criticisms against the Congress for adopting a “treacherous approach” towards it.
With the Muslim league, second biggest UDF constituent, taking a tough stand that it should get the post of Deputy Chief Minister if the Government plans to have such a position, the Congress was forced to keep this crucial issue out of the agenda of the UDF meeting held in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
The Congress repeated at the meeting what Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said the other day about reports on making Chennithala the Deputy CM by telling the allies that such reports were a creation by the media, that the party had not taken any decision in this regard and that no decision would be taken without discussions in the front.
However, the allies were not prepared to trust this. Sources said that Muslim league’s Industries Minister PK Kunhalikutty questioned the Congress’s truthfulness by saying that not everything could be believed to be a media creation. Kunhalikutty also told the Congress leaders that his party could not let the UDF affairs run in the present manner.
MP Veerendarakumar of minor UDF constituent Socialist Janata (Democratic) reportedly said that the media could not be accused of inventing stories but it was the Congressmen themselves who were feeding them with information regarding the disputes and decisions within the Congress on the issue of making Chennithala the Deputy CM.
At the same time, there are rumours that the Muslim league’s protest is part of a strategy devised by the Congress’s ‘A’ group headed by Chandy in order to deny the post of Deputy CM to Chennithala, his enemy in the party leading the ‘I’ group. Observers say that these rumours need not be totally unfounded considering the close relations between Chandy and the league.
“The ‘A’ group is desperate to find some way to deny the PCC president the post of Deputy CM. There is every reason to believe that the Muslim league is staking claim for the post in order to help Chandy achieve his goal. But we don’t care. It is now the Chief Minister’s responsibility to settle this issue amicably,” said a Congress leader close to Chennithala.
After the meeting, UDF convener PP Thankachan claimed that the issue of Deputy CM’s post had not come up for discussion. “I am not denying the fact that talks are going on between Chandy and Chennithala on this but they have not come to a decision. The Congress has not taken a decision and issue has not been discussed in the UDF,” Thankachan said.
Meanwhile, the Nair Service Society (NSS) stepped up its battle against the Congress and the UDF Government over their alleged pro-minorities and anti-majorities policies. NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair told newsmen on Thursday that his outfit would not hold talks with Congress anymore, alleging that it had taken a treacherous approach towards the NSS.
He also gave strict instructions to NSS office-bearers who were occupying positions in Government bodies to vacate them immediately as part of the standoff. “Otherwise they will have to give up the positions they hold in he NSS,” he said. Several NSS office-bearers have already given up their positions in Government bodies.
Referring indirectly to the minority communities and parties that were allegedly controlling the Chandy Government, Nair said, “They are free to talk communalism, negotiate for positions, grab them and do anything they like.” He also said that it was the Chief Minister who was responsible for the worsening of the situation.