Kerala: Chennithala set for Home portfolio as Satheesan seals cabinet peace formula

Thiruvananthapuram: After days of visible unease and intense behind-the-scenes negotiations, senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala appears all set to join the cabinet of Chief Minister-designate V.D. Satheesan, with the crucial Home portfolio likely to be handed to the veteran leader in what party insiders describe as a decisive peace formula worked out by the Congress high command.

Saturday witnessed a dramatic round of political consultations that began early in the morning at Chennithala’s residence, where a stream of senior Congress leaders, including AICC observer Deepa Dasmunshi, arrived for discussions.

Soon afterwards, Satheesan himself drove to Chennithala’s house for a crucial round of talks before rushing to the residence of Congress general secretary K. C. Venugopal.

The nearly 45-minute discussions at Venugopal’s residence appeared to have finally broken the deadlock that had persisted ever since Satheesan emerged victorious in the race for the chief ministership, leaving sections loyal to Chennithala deeply disappointed.

Television visuals later showed Venugopal heading directly to Chennithala’s residence, signalling that the final contours of the compromise had been worked out.

By the time the meeting ended, the mood had visibly transformed, with both leaders emerging smiling and relaxed before waiting reporters.

“Chennithala’s words in the party do matter. All leaders will be consulted, discussed and debated,” Venugopal said, underlining the Congress leadership’s efforts to project unity after the bruising leadership battle.

Chennithala, carefully choosing reconciliation over confrontation, declared: “I am always a Congressman and all along I have been a true Congressman.”

With the Chennithala issue apparently resolved, the Congress has now shifted focus to the finalisation of ministerial berths in the new United Democratic Front (UDF) government.

Among those strongly tipped for inclusion are Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, K. Muraleedharan, Sunny Joseph, A. P. Anil Kumar, P. C. Vishnunath, M. Liju and Chandy Oommen. Late-night consultations are also underway over possible surprise inclusions, with names such as V. P. Sajeendran, T. Siddiq, Anwar Sadath and Roji M. John gaining traction.

Among women legislators, Bindu Krishna, Shanimol Usman and Uma Thomas remain in contention.

Meanwhile, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), the second-largest ally in the UDF, is learnt to have narrowed its shortlist to P. K. Kunhalikutty, K. M. Shaji, N. Shamsudheen, Parakkal Abdullah and V. E. Gafoor for cabinet positions.

“By tomorrow afternoon, the entire list of cabinet ministers will be handed over to the Governor,” Venugopal said.

The swearing-in ceremony of Satheesan as Kerala’s 13th Chief Minister, along with his 20-member cabinet, will be held at the Central Stadium at 10 a.m. on Monday, with Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administering the oath of office.

In a notable political gesture, CPI-M state secretary M. V. Govindan said the Left opposition would attend the ceremony and would not boycott the function.

IANS