No factional fight in Congress, says Rahul Gandhi

NEW DELHI: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has tried to shield his hand-picked Kerala PCC president VM Sudheeran following increasing demands for his removal after the party’s defeat in the assembly polls.

During his meeting with over 60 top Kerala Congress leaders in Delhi, Gandhi said, “there will be no space for those who indulge in factional politics in Congress” and that ‘he is against the attempts to pin the blame on a single person for the assembly poll defeat.'

At the same time, leaders belonged to the dominant Omman Chandy and Ramesh Chennithala groups have also told Gandhi there is a need for ‘complete restructure’ of the state Congress post-defeat ‘from top to bottom’, it is learnt.

The discussions will continue. While Sudheeran was made state PCC chief by Gandhi after rejecting the names sent by the two dominant groups post-poll defeat, many senior leaders have been publically demanding his removal, alleging he had adopted a confrontationist attitude vis a vis the Chandy regime and some ministers right ahead of polls.

Gandhi’s ‘stern warning’ against factionalism is against a state Congress unit that has a history of thriving through factional fights.

Gandhi’s all-out bid to shield Sudheeran, to many, is a reminder of the Maximalist positions he took in the past; in protecting ex-Punjab PCC chief BS Bajwa before Captain Amarinder Singh forced his removal by threatening to quit the Congress and, in shielding then Assam CM Tarun Gogoi, resulting in Himanta Biswa sarma breaking the party and joining BJP.