The Hindu : Karunakaran starts mobilising supporters

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 26, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala

Karunakaran starts mobilising supporters

By Girish Menon

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM APRIL 25. The veteran Congress leader, K. Karunakaran, has started mobilising his supporters to face any drastic action that the party high command may announce.

During a chat with mediapersons today, Mr. Karunakaran asserted that he would rather wait for the high command decision before finalising his future course of action, but the ebullient Mr. Karunakaran did not hide the fact that he did not propose to remain idle in the intervening period. "We will wait till the Delhi decision comes. But since I am an optimist, I sincerely believe that matters could be straightened out,'' he remarked.

Mr. Karunakaran took a few hours of rest after arriving here from Delhi this afternoon and then went into separate sessions with his MLA supporters, DCC presidents and KPCC office-bearers. The main thrust of this process appears to be to mobilise his party supporters at the grass-root level. The proposal is to organise district and block-level group meetings, besides spreading it to feeder organisations.

The veteran leader made it a point to play up the factional sentiments during his closed-door meetings with his supporters this evening, pinpointing on the lapses of the Antony Government in various sectors and to the fact that the division in the Congress party in the State was vertical and horizontal.

Mr. Karunakaran is understood to have highlighted two major issues during the course of his discussions with the Congress president. One issue relates to the all-round disaffection in the UDF with regard to the police policy of the State Government. Mr. Karunakaran has also highlighted the refusal of the Chief Minister to meet his MLAs and redress their grievances. This was one of the reasons that led to the fielding of a rebel candidate for the Rajya Sabha elections, he is reported to have said.

Mr. Karunakaran appears to have taken off from this point when he met his supporters this afternoon. Even at the informal chat with mediapersons, he did not spare the Chief Minister, A. K. Antony, and his Government for failing to fulfill its promises.

"The numbers do not matter. What is important is the functioning of the Government. Mr. Antony himself had expressed dissatisfaction at the Government's functioning. When he came to power, he wanted three months to set things right. Now he promises to set the State on the path of development in the next three years. As far as the party workers are concerned, the organisation has an important role to play in redressing his grievances,'' he said.

In reply to a question, Mr. Karunakaran said he never had any doubts about the Government's ruling majority. "If the Chief Minister is confident about it, then why should he repeat it?'' he asked. When he was asked whether Mr. Antony would have to seek a confidence vote, Mr. Karunakaran said he did not think a confidence vote would be necessary.

Mr. Karunakaran also tried to underplay news reports about his views about tying up with the CPI(M). He stated that he had changed his views about the CPI(M) in tune with the changing times. To a question on reports of the LDF's plan for a no-confidence motion, Mr. Karunakaran said he would rather not break a mirror to view an image.

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