Resignations and Defections Rock Congress Ahead of Local Polls

Kozhikode / Pathanamthitta: With local body elections approaching in Kerala, the Congress party is witnessing growing internal dissent and discontent. On Wednesday, 12 Congress members, including the Mandalam President, resigned from the party in Kozhikode, signalling a deepening crisis at the grassroots level.

The dispute reportedly stemmed from seat allocation disagreements in the upcoming council elections. The Chalappuram Division, a seat that Congress has consistently held, was allotted to the Revolutionary Marxist Party (RMP) as part of the seat-sharing arrangement. This decision triggered protests within the local unit, leading Mandalam President Ayoob and 11 others to tender their resignations at the District Congress Committee (DCC) office.

According to party sources, the CMP had demanded two seats, including one long held by Congress. Senior leaders reportedly agreed to this arrangement, further fuelling dissatisfaction among local leaders who felt the party overlooked its own capable candidates in favour of RMP nominees. Insiders indicated that the Congress has not yet formally accepted the resignations.

In another setback for Congress, Pathanamthitta district witnessed a defection on Wednesday. P Sujatha, Koyiprath Panchayat President, resigned from her post and announced her decision to join the BJP. The local leadership had been facing internal disputes for some time. Sujatha was formally welcomed into the BJP by local leaders with a garland, a day after submitting her resignation.

The Congress leadership has yet to issue an official response to either development, even as such defections and internal disputes raise concerns about the party’s cohesion ahead of the polls.