State Cong: Discontent brewing after revamp

The revamp of the State unit, done after the gap of 12 years, has triggered a major discontent in the party. Soon after the list was released on Thursday, senior party leader and former minister T John resigned from the KPCC membership for not accommodating him.

Upset leaders

Similarly, another prominent leader Siddaramaiah and many of his followers, former union minister C K Jaffer Sharief and many other leaders are also said to be upset. Some of the dissatisfied leaders are planning to meet the high command in Delhi soon to air their grievances.

The State Congress has been at crossroads ever since it lost in 2004 assembly elections.

It has not been able to make a come back mainly due to factionalism. Leaders accusing each other, lodging complaints to the high command against their own party men and loyalists-outsiders fued have become common in the party.

It was hoped that re-organisation of the KPCC would help rejuvenate the party, but the exercise, it seems, has only aggravated the problem.

The party sources said loyal party workers have been neglected, while many of those who hardly visit the party office but have the backing of senior leaders in Delhi have been accommodated in the reconstituted KPCC. A majority of the members are either legislators or former ministers.

Many leaders who were ministers in the S M Krishna-led Government have been made the office bearers. About 18 newly-appointed members, it is said, are not even the KPCC members, sources said.

15 members

Sources said that none of the 15 members proposed by Siddaramaiah have been accommodated in the re-organised KPCC. Siddaramaiah’s supporters have asked him to take up the issue seriously with the high command.

KPCC President G Parameshwar on Friday warned leaders against airing their views in public. Those who have been left out of the newly-formed KPCC, will be accommodated in various committee to be formed in the coming days, he added.