With the upcoming Lok Sabha elections round the corner and the Congress party in all likelihood to allow the 14 sitting MP’s to contest, it has to find new candidates in only two seats -- Kannur and Alappuzha.
This was hinted by none other than state Congress president and sitting Kannur Lok Sabha member K. Sudhakaran, who dropped enough hints that he will not be seeking re-election.
With him dropping out, the party will have to find a new candidate there besides at Alappuzha, which the Congress-led UDF candidate lost to the CPI(M) candidate in the 2019 polls.
At the 2019 polls, the Congress-led UDF won 19 out of the 20 seats in the state, losing just the Alappuzha seat.
The UDF allies -- IUML won both the seats, so did the RSP candidate at Kollam, and the Kottayam constituency was won by Kerala Congress (Mani) party’s candidate, who later moved to the ruling CPI(M)-led Left Front.
Sudhakaran, who returned after a brief tour to the US for medical attention, has hinted that in a matter of 10 days, the party will be naming their candidate from Kannur and Alappuzha.
Incidentally, the Congress being the party that leads the UDF, has already commenced talks with allies and they have finished the first round with the Kerala Congress party headed by veteran legislator P.J. Joseph, who has staked claim to the Kottayam Lok Sabha seat. The seat was held by the erstwhile Kerala Congress(M) to which Joseph belonged till a faction moved out and went on to become the third biggest ally of the ruling Left.
Even though the second biggest ally in the UDF -- the IUML, which has two seats, has expressed their desire to get a third one, it’s unlikely to get the nod from the Congress party.
They have asked for the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, if sitting member Rahul Gandhi decides not to seek re-election from his seat as there has been speculation that he might move out to another South Indian state.