Analysis | Branded arrogant, Satheesan faces toughest political test in divided Cong house

Opposition leader V D Satheesan's key for performance enhancement ironically undid him at the recent Political Affairs Committee (PAC) meeting. The sheer measure of hostility he felt at the meet would make him realize that he faces the toughest political battle in his career.

Almost four years since he was handed the responsibility to lead the party in the state along with the president of the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC), K Sudhakaran, Satheesan has come face to face with a reality check regarding the latest crisis. Satheesan appears to be on one side, and his rivals, both natural and earned, appear on the other. 

Satheesan’s way of functioning, which his critics have been questioning for a while, came under criticism at the PAC meeting, with two of his colleagues – Wandoor MLA A P Anilkumar and Sooranad Rajasekharan coming down heavily on him. Satheesan had come prepared to present what is understood to be a plan to focus on 63 winnable constituencies in the assembly elections due next year. The Congress had won 21 seats in 2021 assembly elections. Satheesan sensed potential in 42 more seats.

 The presentation was reportedly disrupted with Anilkumar questioning Satheesan for making the plan without consulting party leadership. Rajasekharan, meanwhile, slammed Satheesan, saying the opposition leader’s official residence had ceased to be a shelter for Congress workers. The details of the meeting were promptly leaked to the media, with the Satheesan bashers making their intentions clear. 

The PAC episode was not an isolated development. It happened amid the ongoing discussions over a possible change in KPCC leadership and Ramesh Chennithala’s attempts to regain the lost grip over party machinery. Satheesan was picked as leader of the opposition over Chennithala after the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) lost the 2021 assembly elections.  After remaining sidelined since the 2021 rout, Chennithala had recently managed to gain some endorsement from prominent Hindu community leaders G Sukumaran Nair and Vellappally Natesan both of whom have made their displeasure about Satheesan earlier.

Satheesan’s uneasiness over working with Sudhakaran as KPCC president had come out multiple times. It was widely speculated that the former wanted the latter replaced with some other leader. Those who call for Sudhakaran’s replacement have also been citing his purported health issues as a hindrance to running the organisation and getting it election-ready.

The opposition leader, meanwhile, was criticised for his alleged one-upmanship and disregard for party leaders. Those who have been unhappy with Satheesan’s elevation and style of functioning have been reasoning that if at all there is a change in PCC leadership, the opposition leader should also be changed since both the appointments came as a package. 

A change in PCC leadership, however, seems to be on the cards now with reports saying the party national leadership has initiated consultations with state leaders as to the way forward.

“There is a feeling within the national leadership that the combination of Satheesan and Sudhakaran has failed beyond repair. The leadership is also convinced that both sides have a role in it. Hence, there is a sentiment that it would be unfair to punish only one person for the fallouts,” a Congress MLA told Onmanorama. On Satheesan’s 63-constituency plan the fate of which seems uncertain now, the MLA said he should have taken into confidence either the state leadership or the high command before proceeding with such a move. 

The MLA and other Congress leaders Onmanorama spoke to, including a former minister and a former MLA, said they did not suspect Satheesan’s intentions though they also had reservations about his failure to take others into confidence. Satheesan’s performance as the leader on the floor of the assembly has been impressive and he had also played a key role in devising the party’s strategies in the Lok Sabha elections and assembly bypolls. It seems, however, he has been trapped by his own overconfidence, a Youth Congress leader who identified himself as a supporter of Satheesan said. 

Those who support Satheesan are also suspicious of the timing of the latest developments. They believe the PAC slamming was not spontaneous but an orchestrated move by those who have been trying to undermine the opposition leader. In a suggestive tone, one of them said Anilkumar was too close to AICC general secretary K C Venugopal while Rajasekharan is a Chennithala loyalist. 

The MLA and the former minister Onmanorama spoke to rubbished such insinuations. 

The latest letdown has come as an opportunity for Satheesan to make amends and build support within the party system. Though he has had the support of a set of young party leaders, including MLAs, since his elevation as the opposition leader, they seem to have chosen to adopt a strategic silence at the moment when the power equations in the party remain unclear.

For Satheesan, an immediate opportunity is the Malayora Samara Yatra, a protest march covering 60 assembly constituencies. It would be the first massive political exercise he leads on his own. The event offers him an opportunity to prove his potential as a leader of the masses, though challenges are many.