Kerala unit of Congress set to undergo a makeover after LS triumph

Thiruvananthapuram: With the Congress registering an excellent performance in Kerala in the Lok Sabha polls, all eyes are on the upcoming shakeup to its state unit's organisational structure, which could see fresh faces from the new generation being placed in key posts.

Though the shakeup was planned for last year, the top brass decided that any changes ahead of the coming Parliamentary polls might cause heartburn among those removed and could affect the fortunes of its candidates.

With the Congress-led UDF winning 18 out of the 20 seats and even though two sitting MPs - K. Muraleedharan and Remya Haridas - lost, there were massive gains for party candidates in seats like Kasargod, Kannur, Kozhikode, and Palakkad, with all of them increasing their margin of victories substantially, especially in the strongholds of the CPI-M. The party leadership has decided to capitalise on these gains by effecting the shakeup now.

While incumbent President K.Sudhakaran, who retained the Kannur Lok Sabha seat with a margin of over one lakh votes, will continue, the shakeup will focus mostly on the 14 district Congress Committees. The top brass has already begun its discussions and the consensus has been to ensure that the young leaders get more representation at all levels.

Among those who might get crucial posts are K.S. Sabarinadhan, Rigil Makutty and others, including women.

The Congress is gearing up to face the local bodies poll scheduled for next year with renewed vigour in the wake of the success in the Lok Sabha polls, under the to-be reconstituted committees at all levels.