Thiruvananthapuram: Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) leader A Vijayaraghavan will be the new convener of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Kerala.
Vijayaraghavan, a member of the CPM central committee, will replace veteran leader Vaikom Viswan. The decision was taken by the party state secretariat.
Sources said Viswan had requested the party to let him relinquish the top post due to health problems. Viswan has been the LDF convener for the past 12 years.
Speaking to reporters, outgoing convener Viswan said it was decided that CPM and CPI would contest in one each of the two "winnable" Rajya Sabha seats of the three that would fall vacant by this month end.
Congress leader and Rajya Sabha deputy chairman P J Kurian, CPM leader C P Narayanan and Joy Abraham of Kerala Congress are retiring on July 1.
The RS candidates would be decided later, he said to a question.
Vijayaraghavan told reporters later that his efforts would be to strengthen the LDF's base.
Viayaraghavan is a former Rajya Sabha MP. He had contested the Lok Sabha polls in 2014, but failed.
(With inputs from PTI)