Oommen Chandy may not contest in Lok Sabha election

Thiruvananthapuram: With the Lok Sabha election imminent, the strategy of the Congress is to push former chief minister Oommen Chandy to contest. However, Chandy said to media that he is not interested.

The news came as a surprise to not only party members but many Keralites. As per reports, the party leaders believe that the appearance of Oommen Chandy in the election would benefit the Congress as it is a decisive election. 

Also read: Bombs hurled at houses of Kerala BJP workers in Kozhikode

Though Chandy said to media that he is not interested in contesting the election, media reports quote sources stating that he may change his stance if the Congress high command pressurises him.

Chandy told media that he is an MLA and said the general opinion is that MLAs need not fight the Lok Sabha elections.

Rumour is abuzz though that Oommen Chandy would contest from either Kottayam or Wayanad. 

As per reports, Chandy has said repeatedly that he wishes to complete 50 years as a legislator. Puthuppally (Kottayam district) is his strength and he does not wish to be in national electoral politics. 

There are also reports that when party president Rahul Gandhi made him the AICC general secretary, in Andhra Pradesh, Chandy said that he is not comfortable with Hindi.

Meanwhile, Mullappally Ramachandran has also stated that he will not contest in the Lok Sabha election because he holds the post of KPCC president.

Kerala has 20 Lok Sabha seats. In the 2014 election, the Congress won 12 seats, CPI(M) won eight seats and BJP won one seat.

Presently, two seats lie vacant. The Kottayam seat fell vacant after Jose K Mani of the Kerala Congress recently quit following his election to the Rajya Sabha. The Wayanad seat, represented by Congress leader Shanavas, fell vacant after the lawmaker passed away last month.

 

Read Exclusive COVID-19 Coronavirus News updates, at MyNation.