In a move that could invite the wrath of the bosses of the Congress party, senior Congress leader K. V. Thomas announced that he would attend the seminar organised by the CPI(M) as part of its ongoing 23rd Party Congress, which got under way at Kannur the other day.
The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K. Sudharakan had, the other day, cautioned Mr. Thomas that attending the seminar against the diktats of the party would culminate in his eviction from the party. Shashi Tharoor, MP, had decided to skip the meeting after the party national leadership denied him permission to attend the seminar on centre-State relations. Speaking to media persons at his Kochi residence, Prof. Thomas said he was allotted 30 minutes to speak at the session.
Mr. Thomas, an All India Congress Committee (AICC) member, said he had not met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi since 2018. The former Union Minister said he will not join any other party and will continue to be in Indian politics. He also maintained that only the national leadership of the party could take any organisational action against him as he was a member of the AICC.
“When I meet Prime Minister Modi, someone will allege that I am moving towards the BJP. If I meet Sitaram Yechuri, the allegation will be that I am gravitating towards the CPI(M). It was Mr. Yechuri who invited me to the national seminar. Mr. Gandhi too had attended the meetings convened by the CPI(M) he said.”
Mr. Thomas had earlier aired in public his dismay after being denied the seat to contest the Ernakulam seat, which he had represented in the Parliament, in the 2019 election. Incidentally, Mr. Thomas was the only sitting Congress MP from the State who was denied the seat that time. Prof. Thomas, a chemistry teacher, had also served as the State Fisheries Minister.
