A day after the Congress-led United Democratic Front swept the Kerala Assembly elections, winning 102 of the state’s 140 seats, camps led by three senior Congress leaders – V D Sathisean, Ramesh Chennithala and K C Venugopal – began frantically lobbying among the party’s newly elected legislators to support their claim to the chief minister’s post.
Meanwhile, people familiar with the matter said the Congress is likely to send AICC general secretary Mukul Wasnik and treasurer Ajay Maken to Kerala as observers to take feedback from newly elected MLAs to decide the party’s legislative leader, who will effectively become the chief minister.
On Monday, the Congress-led United Democratic Front won a decisive victory, winning 102 seats, while the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front won 35 seats. The BJP won three seats.
Sathisan (61), the leader of the opposition in the outgoing Assembly, and Ramesh Chennithala (69), a former minister and former MLA, are seen as the main contenders for the chief minister’s post after winning from their respective constituencies of Paravur and Haripad in the just-concluded assembly polls. Also in the fray is Venugopal (63), general secretary (organization) of AICC and Lok Sabha MP from Alappuzha, who has remained actively involved in the party’s organizational affairs in Kerala since the 2024 general elections and leads a loyal faction within the party.
Congress functionaries close to Chennithala cite his seniority in the state unit and decades of experience in party and administrative roles to support his claim, while those close to Sathisan maintain that the United Democratic Front’s victory under his leadership makes him the front-runner for the top job.
“He is the most senior leader in the current state unit and has a lot of experience in administrative matters. Although many of his juniors like Ashok Chavan (Maharashtra) and Kiran Kumar Reddy (Andhra Pradesh) during the Youth Congress days became chief ministers of their states, Chennithala did not get the opportunity. This is his moment,” said a Congress leader close to Chennithala, who requested anonymity.
Chennithala served as the president of the students and youth wings of the Congress in Kerala. He has been a six-time MLA, a six-time MP, and the Home Minister of Kerala between 2014 and 2016. Although he served as LoP in the assembly from 2016 to 2021, he failed to bring the UDF to power in the 2021 assembly elections.
The above-mentioned leader claimed that Chennithala has the support of more than 30 of the 63 newly elected Congress candidates.
A leader close to Satheesan and involved in the lobbying effort said the party’s “landslide result” makes Satheesan’s case for the top job “much easier.”
“Just as he (Sathesan) predicted, the United Democratic Front has bagged more than 100 seats. We have at least 25 seats in Parliament to our credit. We also have the support of allies like the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML),” the leader claimed.
A former Congress MLA from Alappuzha said that though Sathesan can rightfully claim the chief minister’s post as the face of the party for the last five years, the final decision rests with the national leadership, which may give precedence to a top leader like Chennithala. “All the leaders who became Congress chief ministers in Kerala served as ministers in previous governments. Sathisean can be considered a newcomer,” the former MLA said.
Venugopal, who is considered close to the party’s national leadership, especially Rahul Gandhi, is also seen as a potential face for the CM, even though he is not an MLA. However, in the Sathisan and Chennithala-led camps, Venugopal is seen as a leader from Kerala who oversees the party’s affairs in Delhi.
The aforementioned Chennithala loyalist questioned the logic of the AICC general secretary abandoning his national role within the party to come to Kerala when there are already qualified contenders for the chief minister’s post in the state.
“…If he is nominated for the post of Chief Minister in Kerala, by-elections will have to be held twice (one each for Lok Sabha and Assembly). This is unnecessary,” the official said.
