The Congress leadership on Monday began wielding the stick against rebel candidates who continued to be reticent in making way for official candidates by issuing suspension notices against them.
However, the rebel candidates’ resilience in remaining in the fray despite the threats has actually surprised the KPCC, which gave another 24 hours’ time for the rebels to behave.
In Malappuram
In Malappuram, where the party is contesting 24 local bodies on its own, the party leadership disbanded three mandalam committees of Cheriyamundam, Marakkara, and Kondotty for entering into an electoral understanding with the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in violation of the code of conduct agreed to by the IUML and the party as a part resolution to their traditional rivalries in these local bodies.
The three mandalam presidents, M.P. Siddique, K.P. Surendran, and K.M. Bichu, have also been suspended from their primary membership of the party. DCC member V.P. Khader has also been suspended from the primary membership of the party for supporting the move.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said in Kasargod that rebels had been given a one more chance to withdraw from the fray.
The District Congress Committees have been given full powers to take action against rebel candidates who fail to withdraw from the fray.
The KPCC wants the rebels to retire from the contest and issue pamphlets declaring their positions in the respective localities.
The rebel menace was spread across the State. In terms of numbers, it was much higher than, but not a real threat when compared to the larger canvass of the local bodies’ poll.
he party is more perturbed by the local alliances the rebels have notched up with the LDF, which the leadership fears might affect its relations with the coalition partners.
