LS poll pressure mounts on Chandy
TNN | Jan 24, 2019, 23:34 IST
Thiruvananthapuram: Former chief minister and AICC general secretary Oommen Chandy, who is in-charge of Congress party in Andhra Pradesh, will find it tough to resist the mounting pressure on him to contest Lok Sabha poll. Both AICC leadership and the state leadership are of the opinion that he should be in the fray as his candidature will benefit the party in a big way across the state.
However, Chandy is playing his cards close to his chest and has not revealed his mind to anyone. But, leaders close to him say that he has already communicated to AICC president Rahul Gandhi that he should be allowed to work in the state.
Chandy is all set to cross a milestone in the state assembly as he will be completing 50 years as legislator without break. He will be completing 50 years in assembly in 2020 and only K M Mani holds a similar record.
When Chandy was appointed as the AICC general secretary and was given the charge of Andhra Pradesh, the ‘A’ group leaders had seen this as an attempt to keep Chandy away from the state. Now, with the demand for Chandy to contest the Lok Sabha election, his followers in the party are citing it as a clever ploy to keep him away from the state. Hence, they are of the belief that Chandy will not yield to any kind of pressure.
“At present, there is no such discussion going on in the party. Let the high command decide,” said Chandy, who has kept the options open. However, Chandy has made it clear that the Kottayam seat is for Kerala Congress (Mani) and this was the agreement reached when Mani had come back to the front.
This is creating confusion among the party circles since the state leadership wants Chandy to contest from Kottayam. “Chandy is a leader who can win from anywhere in the state. The party and the workers want him to contest,” said KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran.
Even AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, who is in-charge of the party affairs in the state, made it clear that all the suggestions from the party leaders from the state will be considered before finalising the candidates.
However, Chandy is playing his cards close to his chest and has not revealed his mind to anyone. But, leaders close to him say that he has already communicated to AICC president Rahul Gandhi that he should be allowed to work in the state.
Chandy is all set to cross a milestone in the state assembly as he will be completing 50 years as legislator without break. He will be completing 50 years in assembly in 2020 and only K M Mani holds a similar record.
When Chandy was appointed as the AICC general secretary and was given the charge of Andhra Pradesh, the ‘A’ group leaders had seen this as an attempt to keep Chandy away from the state. Now, with the demand for Chandy to contest the Lok Sabha election, his followers in the party are citing it as a clever ploy to keep him away from the state. Hence, they are of the belief that Chandy will not yield to any kind of pressure.
“At present, there is no such discussion going on in the party. Let the high command decide,” said Chandy, who has kept the options open. However, Chandy has made it clear that the Kottayam seat is for Kerala Congress (Mani) and this was the agreement reached when Mani had come back to the front.
This is creating confusion among the party circles since the state leadership wants Chandy to contest from Kottayam. “Chandy is a leader who can win from anywhere in the state. The party and the workers want him to contest,” said KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran.
Even AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik, who is in-charge of the party affairs in the state, made it clear that all the suggestions from the party leaders from the state will be considered before finalising the candidates.
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