New Delhi: Ending 10 days of suspense over who would be the subsequent Chief Minister of Kerala, the Parliament on Thursday elected Chief of the Opposition within the final Meeting VD Satheesan over the principle candidate, All India Congress Committee Basic Secretary (Group) KC Venugopal, for 5 major causes.
First, Satheesan, a six-term MLA, led the Congress-led UDF’s ballot marketing campaign and gained public assist. He had declared that if the UDF fails to win lower than 100 seats out of the 140 seats in Kerala, he’ll “stop politics and go into exile.” Ultimately, the Coalition surpassed that threshold and gained 102 seats, whereas the Congress emerged as the only largest get together with 63 seats.
As a member of Congress, he was the principle voice of opposition to the earlier authorities led by Pinarayi Vijayan. Though Venugopal loved closeness with Rahul Gandhi, it was Satheesan who laid the muse in Kerala for the UDF’s return to energy after a decade.
In Kerala, grassroots Congress staff took to the streets to protest over Venugopal’s attainable appointment as CM. Sensing the general public sentiment, the Congress management selected Satheesan.
Secondly, Satheesan had the assist of key UDF constituencies such because the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) with 22 MLAs, the Kerala Congress (Joseph) with 7 MLAs and the Revolutionary Socialist Occasion with 3 MLAs. They freely supported Satheesan within the industrial. For the Congress management, subsequently, choosing Mr. Satheesan was important to the alliance’s administration, as ignoring the needs of key UDF companions may have created friction throughout the coalition proper initially of his time period.
Thirdly, KC Venugopal, who has gained 3 times within the Kerala Meeting elections and 3 times within the Meeting elections, has come to be seen primarily as a ‘Delhi man’ over the previous decade or so resulting from his closeness to Rahul Gandhi. He has been the AICC common secretary since 2017 and is primarily concerned in nationwide politics. In reality, he didn’t contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and have become a Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan the next 12 months.
Fourth, if Venugopal is chosen as chief minister, the Congress will instantly be pressured into two new elections. Since Venugopal is at present an MP from Alappuzha and never an MLA, to proceed as CM he must resign from the Congress inside six months and contest the meeting polls, working the political danger of defeat after already turning into the Chief Minister. Kerala doesn’t have a Legislative Council. Venugopal had opted to surrender his Rajya Sabha seat to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha elections efficiently.
If he have been elevated to the place of CM, the Congress would have needed to contest the Sabah by-election in Alappuzha on the identical time.
With the Congress struggling in elections in a number of different states, many leaders felt that the get together couldn’t danger one other electoral check. Satheesan, who’s already an MLA and chief of the opposition, proposed to the Congress a smoother and safer transition of energy.
Fifth, one other issue that strengthened Satheesan’s case was his constant outlook as a secular chief at a time when communal polarization was turning into a part of the political discourse in Kerala. Over the previous few years, Mr. Satheesan has repeatedly attacked each the Bharatiya Janata Occasion and the CPI(M) for indulging in communal politics.
His ideological positioning was intently aligned with the Congress management’s broader nationwide advocacy, particularly that of Rahul Gandhi, who repeatedly emphasised secularism, social justice, and resistance to communal politics.
Satheesan was one of many few Congress leaders who constantly “walked his speak” when it got here to ideology. He more and more got here to embody the Congress’s ideological place extra clearly than different candidates within the state.
Whereas another state leaders typically maintained a softer or extra cautious line on delicate political points, Satheesan often translated the get together’s nationwide message into aggressive native political motion in Kerala.
For the get together management, making him prime minister additionally ensured continuity between the Congress’s nationwide message and its most necessary electoral victory in recent times.
(Edited by Vinny Mishra)
Additionally learn: Parliament will solely decide 10 days after the ballot outcomes. VD Satheesan appointed as thirteenth CM of Kerala
