New Delhi, March 19 The Congress leadership is grappling with the question of whether to allow MPs to contest the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections, and this has stalled the party's second list of candidates for the state, sources said on Thursday.
The Congress is also reportedly working to appease its MP from Kannur, K Sudhakaran, who is upset after his name was not cleared by the party's Central Election Committee (CEC) to contest the Kerala elections.
Sources said Sudhakaran was scheduled to address the media at the Kerala House in Delhi on Thursday and announce some decisions, but was pacified after the intervention of top leaders, including former defence minister and party veteran A K Antony.
Sources said that after his name was not cleared by the party, Sudhakaran reportedly said "good bye" to K C Venugopal and some other leaders during telephone conversations, putting the party in a difficult position.
Sudhakaran eventually did not address the media, and sources said he has received assurances from senior leaders.
The CEC has left the decision to the Congress high command on whether to allow MPs to contest the upcoming Assembly elections or not.
If allowed, this will lead to by-elections in the Lok Sabha, and the Congress leadership does not want to lose any seat in the Lower House of Parliament.
Leader of Opposition in Kerala V D Satheesan is reportedly strongly opposed to any move to allow MPs to contest the Assembly elections in the southern state.
Sources said that Sudhakaran, a veteran Congress leader who has also served as a minister in Kerala, is keen to contest the upcoming polls from the Kannur Assembly seat, but the party has yet to take a decision on the matter.
Sources also said that at least five MPs, including Attingal MP Adoor Prakash, who is also a former minister in Kerala, are keen to contest the Assembly elections.
Besides, Congress's chief whip in the Lok Sabha, Kodikunnil Suresh, and Lok Sabha MPs from Vadakara and Kozhikode, Shafi Parambil and M K Raghavan, are also hoping to try their luck in the upcoming polls, although they have remained silent so far and have not openly discussed it. However, they have said that they will abide by the party's decision.
They also added that Venugopal, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in charge of organization, may also be interested in having a key role in Kerala if the party comes to power in the state, but has not spoken about this so far.
The Congress has announced its first list of 55 candidates for Kerala. It is contesting 92 seats in the state.
The last date for filing nominations for the Kerala polls is March 23. The polling will be held on April 9, and the counting of votes will take place on May 4. The tenure of the current Kerala Assembly ends on May 23.
