The proposed association of the Kerala Congress (M) led by Jose K. Mani with the Left Democratic Front (LDF) appears to have hit a major blockade with the regional party now coming face to face with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) over the Pala Assembly constituency.
Addressing media persons here on Sunday, NCP leader and Pala MLA Mani C. Kappan asserted that the KC(M) held no emotional connections with the seat as was often touted. “If Pala was Mani (K.M. Mani) sir's wife, she has become my heart now. The mandate that its voters has given to me is not for exchange, not even for a Rajya Sabha seat,” Mr. Kappan said.
According to him, the NCP national leadership has decided not to hand over any of its seats, be it Pala, Kuttanad or Elathur, to anyone for anything. Regarding the proposed entry of the KC(M) faction to the LDF, he said the matter was yet to come up for a discussion in the LDF forum.
Mr. Kappan, who had unsuccessfully contested in Pala against K.M. Mani for three times on a trot, rode on his popularity and the raging factional fight within the KC(M) to emerge victorious during the byelection last year. The election had been necessitated by the death of K.M. Mani.
Responding to Mr. Kappan's statement, Jose K. Mani said more than just a name, Pala was a feeling as far as the KC(M) was concerned. He, however, termed the ongoing debates over the seat as hypothetical and said the party would come clean about its plans sooner than later.
“We would like not to respond to such discussions for the time being as the KC(M) is yet to announce its political stance, which can be expected in a matter of days,” Mr. Mani said.
N. Jayaraj, MLA, another leader with the Mani group, had earlier stated that Pala formed the core of the KC(M) politics. “Irrespective of the coalition that we are going to associate with, Pala should be with us. That's a matter of priority,” he told media persons.
Meanwhile, official source said the CPI(M), the lead partner in the LDF, had been working behind the scenes to sort out the issue at the earliest.
