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Leader of the Opposition successful the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, and All India Congress Committee (AICC) nationalist president, Mallikarjun Kharge, opened consultations with apical leaders from Kerala successful New Delhi connected Tuesday (May 12, 2026) successful a bid to wide the lingering unreality of uncertainty that looms implicit the party’s Chief Minister-designate for Kerala.
AICC wide secretary, K.C. Venugopal, reportedly backed by a important fig of Congress’s MLA designates, erstwhile Leader of the Opposition, V.D. Satheesan, projected by his campy arsenic the designer of United Democratic Front’s (UDF) historical triumph successful Kerala, and elder Congress person Ramesh Chennithala, touted by his supporters arsenic having agelong organisational and administrative experience, and enactment of almighty societal organisations, are the main contenders for the premier post.
Faced with a dwindling model of clip to marque the important and long-drawn-out decision, the High Command, according to a enactment insider, was reportedly seeking the bipartisan enactment of apical leaders, including erstwhile Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) presidents, to reconstruct the play of organisational and confederation stability, which delivered Congress the momentous win.
K. Muraleedharan, erstwhile KPCC president and MLA-designate, who is an invitee to the AICC’s consultations successful New Delhi, appeared not to regularisation retired the anticipation of a acheronian equine for the Chief Minister’s mantle.
Speaking to reporters, Mr Muraleedharan said the AICC’s consultation request not needfully beryllium confined to “three names”.
He said the epoch of the triumvirate of K. Karunakaran, A. K. Antony, and Oommen Chandy successful the Congress successful Kerala was over. “Second-tier leaders from the clip of the 3 Chief Ministers person reached the apical echelons of the enactment successful Kerala. The generational displacement gives the High Command much latitude to marque the close choice,” helium added.
Mr. Muraleedharan stated that “numbers successful the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) were not the sole criterion for deciding the adjacent Chief Minister”. He said the High Command would besides origin successful “popular opinion” successful the matter.
Mr. Muraleedharan said UDF allies, including the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), would person a definite accidental successful the enactment for the Chief Minister’s post. “It’s UDF’s Chief Minister, not Congress’ alone”, helium added.
When asked whether importing a person from New Delhi who is not an MLA-designate would hazard a by-election, Mr. Muraleedharan told reporters that the High Command would “weigh each aspects”.
Senior person and erstwhile Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan told reporters successful New Delhi that the IUML, which reportedly named their prime for the post, would not instrumentality a maximalist presumption and would spell by the High Command’s decision. Mr. Radhakrishnan seemed not to regularisation retired the anticipation of the High Command pitching for a “compromise candidate” to scope a via media betwixt the “opposing factions”. When asked whether helium was successful the reckoning, being the senior-most MLA-designate successful the CLP, Mr. Radhakrishnan said: “I person nary importance”.
