Not in CM race, says KPCC chief Sunny Joseph

KPCC President Sunny Joseph has said the Congress party does not have a chief ministerial candidate. The party high command will decide the Chief Minister. In conversation with the Malayala Manorama editorial team in Kannur, Joseph sheds light on the delay in clarifying the issues related to K Sudhakaran.

Q: You are completing 10 months as the KPCC President. What changes have been brought into the party during this period?A: My presidency was decided by the party leadership. I aimed to keep the Congress united and make it an active force. We have a good team, which gets along with the UDF. We won the local body elections and made the Opposition Leader's rally a success. We also decided on the candidates without issues.

Q: Congress leaders have been reiterating that the UDF will win more than 100 seats. It means Congress will have to win more than 50 seats compared to the previous election. How will it be possible?
A: We're working hard. Local body elections were more challenging than the Assembly ones. We resolved disputes from local polls and still won despite difficult ward delimitation. Preparations for LSG polls strengthened us, and people recognize the need for change.

Q: K Sudhakaran created a crisis while finalising candidates. Isn't he under the control of the Congress party?
A: Sudhakaran has clarified he was unaware of the news. Neither the Opposition Leader nor I spoke against anyone in the party.

Q: Shouldn't Congress have come out with a clarification when such news was spreading?
A: Yes, but we left the issue to the high command. The decision was delayed by four State assembly elections.

Q: The LDF is projecting Pinarayi Vijayan as its (chief ministerial) face. Who is the face of Congress? Are you competing?
A: Congress never projects a chief ministerial candidate before elections. The high command, as AK Antony told me twice, will decide who becomes CM. I confirm I am not in the CM race.

Q: Will any of the MLAs be the Chief Minister?
A: It's unpredictable at this stage.

Q: KPCC's two working presidents and you are in the fray. Does that make the KPCC headless?
A: The KPCC has several people who can keep it going. Initially, we considered assigning the responsibility to someone. However, given the few days left before the elections and the brevity of my absence, the leaders decided against such an arrangement.

Q: Mullappally Ramachandran did not contest when he was the KPCC President. Did you express interest in contesting the polls this time?
A: Mullappally was not a sitting MLA. I had not said that I would contest. In fact, I said I had not decided whether to contest. I made the statement first at the Manorama Hortus event, which was well received.

Q: The CPM State Secretary claims that KK Shailaja is the only candidate who could defeat the KPCC President?
A: Isn't it a credit to me?

Q: The high command's decision not to field sitting MPs in the assembly polls has not been implemented in Assam. Why is it so?
A: I asked the same question to Kharge. I was told that the norm was relaxed for one MP in Assam to support leadership. In Kerala, we have several eligible MPs.

Q: CPM leaders who have left that party are seen on the Congress's list of candidates?
A: G Sudhakaran was isolated and merits relaxation in the term norm. V Kunhikrishnan requested transparency for martyr's family funds and was removed. TK Govindan represents protest against CPM. These factors will impact the elections.

Q: You did not mention Ottappalam?
A: Sasi has displayed his strength in Ottappalam. Are they different factors in politics?

Q: How did PK Sasi become eligible to contest the polls, while Eldhose Kunnappilli is not?
A: They are not similar cases. The decision on Eldhose was made based on an AICC study. The AICC is studying each one of us.

Q: The LDF's election plank is "the government that ensured development"?
A: They are pointing at Vizhinjam for development. Wasn't it Oommen Chandy who brought the project? It was the Oommen Chandy government that had completed 80 per cent of the construction work of the Kannur Airport. The incumbent minister said the LNG pipeline was a minefield.

Q: What is happening with the CPM in Kannur?
A: Leaders in Kannur are angry with the autocratic trends within the CPM. The same anger has permeated the party cadres. The voters will also share the same sentiments.

Q: The Congress had said that its candidates would be declared within 24 hours of the Election Commission notifying the polls. However, discussions on finalising the candidates went on for days even after the poll schedule was announced.
A. We couldn't sit with our alliance partners due to the Opposition Leader's statewide rally. A consensus with the Kerala Congress was reached at the last moment. There was also a move to swap seats with the IUML. Such issues delayed the finalisation of candidates.

Q: It was earlier observed that the Christian community had distanced itself from the Congress party. Has the community's stance changed since you became the KPCC President?
A: Agriculture-related issues had sparked major protests in the hilly regions. In such regions, the people backed the UDF in the LSG polls. I don't claim credit for it. We were able to convince the people.

Q: Was the Kerala Congress (M) willing to join the UDF as part of the change?
A: They were supposed to come, but it did not happen.

Q: How many seats will the UDF win?
A: We have already said that we will win 100 seats. We will win more.