DCC chief selection to be a daunting task

Factional fight may pose problem for Congress leadership

A daunting task awaits the Congress high command to choose a fresh face to head the Kozhikode district unit of the party even as grumblings have surfaced following the exclusion of two senior party leaders from the reconstituted Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC).

At least three names, K.M. Ummer, U. Rajeevan and V.M. Chandran, have been considered for the post of District Congress Committee (DCC) president after the elevation of outgoing president T. Siddique as one of the 12 State vice presidents of the party.

The KPCC is weighing all options in the wake of the approaching three-tier local body polls this year and the Assembly elections next year. Incidentally, the party has no legislator from the district for the last three terms despite winning the two Lok Sabha seats, Kozhikode and Vadakara, during the last three parliamentary elections.

The three-year tenure of Mr. Siddique has put back on the rails the rank and file of the unit which was embroiled in factional wars. Thus, the mantle may fall on an acceptable face that takes everyone into confidence.

Any decision on the new DCC president, however, will be taken only after all the office-bearers, including secretaries and executive committee members, are finalised by February 10. Many feel that groupism may dominate for the post just as former DCC president K.C. Abu and the one of the KPCC general secretaries P.M. Suresh Babu were kept out of the revamped State committee. Both have not been considered in the KPCC for balancing the group politics during organisational restructuring.

Mr. Abu was the DCC president for nearly a decade before Mr. Siddique took over. In the 2016 Assembly polls, he was also denied a seat despite his strong lobbying with the State leaders. However, his presidency was marred not only by factionalism but also saw the decline of the party in the district.

Mr. Babu, who is now the Leader of the Opposition in the Kozhikode Corporation, had unsuccessfully contested the Assembly polls against CPI(M)’s A. Pradeepkumar from the Kozhikode North segment last time.

Many local leaders are unhappy with the elevation of Mr. Siddique but they admit to giving the devil his due as the activities of the Congress has improved during his tenure.

Last time when the KPCC was reconstituted, former DCC president M. Veerankutty, who was also Chairman of the Kerala State Minority Commission, was removed from the KPCC list.