BJP ‘divided’ over KC Venugopal as Kerala chief minister; Rajeev Chandrasekhar spoofs Congress
kerala.Despite the UDF alliance’s landslide victory in the parliamentary elections, the Congress remained locked in fierce internal fighting until days after the results were announced. The deadlock has left Kerala as the only one of the four states heading into assembly elections this year without a chief minister.Replying to a user onA post shared by a netizen said, “There is a funny tough battle between the Kerala BJP and the National People’s Party. The Kerala BJP wants to have KC Venugopal in Kerala and the National People’s Party wants to have KC Venugopal in Delhi.”Citing the post, Chandrasekhar wrote: “My response is – I will neither confirm nor deny that this is true.” The exchange quickly attracted attention online as the Congress leadership in Kerala struggled to find consensus on the chief minister’s issue even as the UDF secured 102 seats in the 140-member Kerala Assembly earlier this month.Three senior Congress leaders are the front-runners for the post: Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, leader of opposition VD Satheesan and senior leader Ramesh Chennithala. The leadership battle has sparked intense lobbying within the party, with supporters of the three camps engaging in poster campaigns, public messaging and online debate.While Satysan and Chennithala are contesting the assembly elections, Venugopal, the sitting member of Parliament and a key figure in the Congress high command, has emerged as a strong contender, turning the race into a three-cornered contest.According to Congress sources, most MLAs are believed to be supporting Venugopal. However, Satheesan continues to enjoy strong support among party workers, while Chennithala, who was previously seen as a strong chief ministerial candidate in the 2021 assembly polls, remains in the fray.Although all three leaders have publicly appealed to their supporters to avoid factionalism and public displays of strength, the power struggle within the Congress has continued unabated, leading to delays in the announcement of the next chief minister of Kerala, while other states that went to polls earlier this month have already formed governments.
