Why this cuts a sorry picture for Cong only Karunakaran can say

The posters said it all: Karunakaran and Indira Gandhi beaming at the voters with Sebastian Paul posing alongside. Ernakulam today saw a Con...

The posters said it all: Karunakaran and Indira Gandhi beaming at the voters with Sebastian Paul posing alongside.

Ernakulam today saw a Congress nightmare on the streets as supporters of K Karunakaran, who is at loggerheads with partyman and Chief Minister A K Antony, actively campaigned for Paul, an Independent candidate backed by the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front in the Ernakulam Lok Sabha bye-election. The official Congress candidate here is M O John.


Posters of Left front’s Paul alongside those of Karunakaran, Indira at Nocham. Rajesh Kumar

In many of the 1,200 booths in the constituency — the turnout was a healthy 63 per cent — Karunakaran men distributed slips to LDF voters. Huge banners screaming ‘‘Karunakaran, the real high command’’ could be seen everywhere. And when it was all over, both the LDF and Congress-led United Democratic Front maintained they were winning, the Left banking on votes swung by the Karunakaran group.

In New Delhi, as reports of the open show of defiance by Karunakaran came in, the Congress high command prepared to take disciplinary action against those who played dirty. The buzz was that the first targets would be the men around Karunakaran.

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Senior party leaders G K Vasan and Veerappa Moily, sent to Kerala as AICC observers for the bye-elections, are expected to submit a report which will also state the role played by the Karunakaran faction.

Names of people who worked against the official Congress candidate will find place in the report and a case will be made out for disciplinary action. Congress sources said that in case the charges are found to be true, the AICC could go in for suspensions as the first definitive step against Karunakaran. Many in New Delhi believe he no longer commands a sizeable following among the MLAs and that his fortunes dipped after the Rajya Sabha polls in April when 24 of the 62 MLAs were thought to be with him.

The AICC may also use the observers’ report as ‘‘evidence’’ against Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee chief K Muraleedharan, son of Karunakaran. It could be argued, sources pointed out, that as head of the state organisation, it was his responsibility to stamp out dissidence and ensure support for the official party candidate.

In the bid to keep the peace in Kerala, Antony was also advised by AICC to reshuffle his ministry and induct some Karunakaran nominees. But in these changed circumstances, that seems to be out.