As part of strengthening the organisational activities of the Congress, Leader of the Opposition V. D. Satheesan and KPCC president K. Sudhakaran held an interactive session with district-level leaders of the party in Kottayam on Saturday.
Addressing the meeting, Mr.Sudhakaran urged the leaders and workers to reach out to the public and set up the maximum number of Congress unit committees (CUC) across the district by May 31 to enhance interaction with the people and take up their issues. “We will need at least five CUCs under every booth committee to better our relations with the public,” he said.
The meeting also discussed the steps to be adopted for intensifying the ongoing protest against the SilverLine semi-high-speed railway project.
In an apparent warning to Kottayam District Congress Committee president Nattakom Suresh, who revolted against the Congress State leadership recently, Mr.Sudhakaran said the KPCC was closely watching the performance of all DCC presidents and those who failed to perform would be removed from the position.
The controversy involving Mr.Suresh, which began with his public outburst against Mr.Satheesan, put the coalition on the backfoot at a time when the United Democratic Front was significantly improving its presence in Kottayam on the back of anti-SilverLine protests
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Satheesan too expressed his dissatisfaction over the developments in Kottayam. Prior to commencing the meeting, he clarified that it was convened not to settle the issues in the DCC, but as part of a joint initiative of the KPCC president and the Leader of the Opposition to strengthen the party at the grassroot level
Senior Congress leaders Oommen Chandy, Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan and others were also present in the meeting.
Mr.Satheesan and Mr.Sudhakaran are slated to convene similar meetings in other districts over the next couple of weeks.
