Kerala Congress (M) has decided not to name anyone as successor to KM Mani, who recently resigned from his position as Finance Minister in the Congress-led United Democratic Front government in Kerala over the bar-bribery scam.
The decision was made on Sunday after a steering committee meeting. Mani resigned on November 10 after a Kerala High Court ruling that allowed for a more detailed investigation into the bar bribery case.
However the opposition had been asking for his resignation for more than a year after the scam surfaced.
In the meeting which was attended by all the senior leaders of the party including P J Joseph and chaired by Mani himself, it was decided that naming anyone else would further weaken the party.
It is believed that there were some party members who wished to name Thomas as the party’s face, the only minister from the party in the current government but did not speak openly about it.
Mani said the investigation into the case should be completed in a time bound manner. Charges against him include accepting a bribe of Rs 1 crore from Kerala State Bar Hotel Owners' Association for renewal of licences to more than 400 Indian Made Foreign Liquor bars.