Kerala: Three Cong heavyweights in race for CM's post

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The results are out and while celebrations have started in the UDF camp, there is anxiety in certain quarters within the winning combine on who would lead the government as CM.
The Left, having failed to muster the numbers, is sitting pretty for the time being. In the UDF camp, though, senior leaders were unwilling to take any questions on the all-important issue.
Sources said Oommen Chandy was not the only candidate in the running; he would most likely face competition from state Congress president Ramesh Chennithala, who enjoys the confidence of the party high command. For a while there were also rumours on Vayalar Ravi being a contender. But Ravi, who took over as civil aviation minister, was quick to clarify that though there was such a suggestion, he had a "huge responsibility" to handle in Delhi.
Answering questions in this regard before the polls, Chennithala had said that though Chandy was qualified in all respects to be CM, Congress was not in the habit of projecting its chief minister in advance.
Insiders say that the thinking in the Chandy camp is that he would not stake any claim to the post if the UDF count didn't reach 80. He was also wary of opponents in the party using recent revelations in the palmolien import scam to checkmate him. Former food and civil supplies minister T H Mustafa, who is an accused in the case, had sometime ago filed an affidavit in court suggesting that Chandy — who was finance minister when the scandal broke out — had been aware of the goings-on. The court has now given the vigilance department, which probed the case, sanction for more investigation after the prosecution submitted that fresh leads were available.
Stability of the government, too, is a matter of concern for anyone hoping for the top job. No one is taking for granted the CPM's words that the Left would play the role of a constructive opposition. "The attitude can always change. The Left backing a disillusioned UDF ally cannot be ruled out," said noted political commentator B R P Bhaskar.
The demands of the allies is another factor worrying the Congress which could return only 38 of the 82 candidates it had fielded. With 9 members in its kitty, Kerala Congress (M) leader K M Mani, who enjoys the confidence of the influential Church, could be a CM hopeful too.
Meantime, Muslim League leader P K Kunjalikutty has already denied he is in the race for deputy chief minister, terming all such speculation as "wishful thinking".
The Congress had initially said it would not give ministerial births to one-man parties. But this stand would certainly be reviewed in the changed circumstances, say insiders.