V.M. Sudheeran’s exit as Congress chief in Kerala was as unexpected as his appointment three years ago. The veteran found his way to the top of the organization against the wishes of powerful lobbies led by his predecessor Ramesh Chennithala and the then chief minister Oommen Chandy.
Chandy and Chennithala wanted G. Karthikeyan to be the party president in the state but the national leadership banked on Sudheeran to lift the party with his unblemished career record ahead of the Lok Sabha election in 2014. V.D. Satheesan’s appointment as vice president reinforced the message.
Sudheeran almost lost the race to Satheesan because Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi was in favor of young faces. Gandhi had successfully brought in young blood to the fore in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi but had to reconsider his preferences in Kerala to appease the still-influential old guard.
The party high command, however, refused to budge before the state satraps and stood by Sudheeran.
The decision was swayed in Sudheeran’s favor, thanks to his issue-based stands through a long career that began with the Kerala Students’ Union. He was a state president of the students’ wing and then the Youth Congress before he rose up the ranks in the Congress to be the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee’s general secretary and vice president. He had also served as a legislator, minister and the speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
Sudheeran’s appointment was a surprise because he did not enjoy the confidence of either group within the Congress in Kerala but he was an obvious choice to counter the caste politics of Kerala centered around the formation of a new political party under the aegis of the SNDP Yogam. Sudheeran’s appointment came as a clear signal to the influential Ezhava community.
The leader may have rubbed many of his colleagues the wrong way with his uncompromising stands but the cadre looked up to him in admiration. Many leaders wanted Sudheeran to lead the party, irrespective of their group loyalties. Though the selection was far from being unanimous, there were hardly any voice of dissent after the choice was made public. It was not easy to fight Sudheeran’s public image.
Even the Congress allies were happy to piggyback on the leader’s image.
Sudheeran lived up to that image from day one. He contradicted the chief minister in several issues of social importance. Chandy no longer enjoyed an unchallenged rule within the party and the government.
Sudheeran had always complained that the Congress lacked sufficient democratic debates within the organization. He insisted that he was not against development but the corruption that was allowed to thrive in the name of development.
Chandy as chief minister and Sudheeran as KPCC president was supposed to give the Congress a face lift. Both leaders were popular and known for their clear stands on crucial issues. The formation would not have a smooth sail, later developments were to reveal.
