Rift in Congress: UDF convener complains to high command against CM Satheesan

Senior Congress leader and United Democratic Front (UDF) convener Adoor Prakash has reportedly filed a formal complaint against Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan with the All India Congress Committee (AICC) high command on Monday, October 5. The complaint was submitted directly to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi, and the complaint demanded the high command’s urgent intervention against Satheesan taking decisions unilaterally.

Earlier, on October 1, in a press conference, Adoor Prakash, who also serves as a Member of Parliament (MP) in the Lok Sabha representing the Attingal constituency, accused Satheesan of taking major government and policy decisions unilaterally without proper consultation with the party leadership or alliance partners. He alleged that he has been deliberately kept in the dark and frequently learns about significant administration and alliance decisions only through social media and news outlets. The conflict between the UDF convener and CM VD Satheesan has come to the fore just four months after the UDF came to power in Kerala.

On October 5, after meeting Kharge, Adoor Prakash didn’t respond to media queries; however, he said “yes” when a reporter asked whether he had met Kharge and communicated the issues.

The rift stemmed from the government's decision to appoint IUML leader MK Muneer as chairman of the State Administrative Reforms Commission and Forward Bloc leader G Devarajan as the State government’s representative in New Delhi. These two positions carry Cabinet rank. Adoor Prakash told the media that he was not informed about these decisions.

“Both of them are deserving people. I am not saying that they are not eligible. But, as the UDF convenor, I was not informed in any way about such matters, nor was there any discussion or communication that we were going to take such a decision,” Adoor Prakash said.