Kerala CPM may deny ticket to Chief Minister Achuthandan

NEW DELHI: The CPM's Kerala unit, which appears determined to deny nomination for Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, has left the decision on allotting him a seat to the district committees. This development does not augur well for the CM as all district committees, barring Pathanamthitta and Kollam, are controlled by Achuthanandan baiters.

A meeting of the state committee, which met in Thiruvananthapuram to decide on the CPM's list of candidates, was of the view that the CM's candidature should be decided through a wider exercise. This is seen to be a move on the part of the state party leadership to ram in its point that the CM does not have the backing of the party apparatus.

The central leadership is not happy with the development as all pre-poll assessments point to the fact that the chief minister has the political wherewithal to bring the alliance additional votes. But state unit leaders are of the view that the party should not put up with the chief minister, who has declared independence of sorts within the party as well as the government.

Unbiased opinion backs the view that a denial of nomination to the chief minister would make things easy for the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). Although the CM's "unilateralism" has been a cause of unease for the CPM, he commands significant support of the unattached voters. "These voters will now move away from the CPM-led front," said a Congress leader.

It be recalled that Achuthanandan was allotted a seat in the last assembly polls after intervention by the Polit bureau. The central unit may not be in a position to exercise its veto as the state party unit and district committees do not have many Achuthanandan supporters. "Even if we lose, we should not put up with Achuthanandan. A ticket for him would mean premium for indiscipline," said a CPM leader.

This sentiment is not shared by the central unit. "We could have given the Congress a run for its money. In the absence of Achuthanandan, the political situation is loaded against the LDF," said a senior CPM leader in the Capital.