Thiruvananthapuram : The Communist Party of India (Marxist) politburo has picked a relatively younger Pinarayi Vijayan (72) as the next chief minister of Kerala.
Vijayan’s rival VS Achuthanandan, who had sought another term, was called by general secretary Sitaram Yechury to the state secretariat and asked to pave the way for the younger leader. Yechury said the 93-year-old veteran will continue to guide and advise the government as Fidel Castro does in Cuba.
The decision taken by the state secretariat and ratified by the state committee was announced by Yechury at AKG Bhavan, the party headquarters. Achuthanandan, who was present at the press conference, did not speak anything. He has convened a press conference here on Saturday to react to the developments. Sources close to Achuthanandan said that he was not happy with the decision.
Achuthanandan had agre-ed to lead the campaign along with Vijayan after he had sought a clarification on his role after the elections. The party had reportedly assured him that it will take an appropriate decision.
The party veteran, who headed the last LDF government, had hoped that he will be given a chance at least for two years. He had told reporters that he was ready to take up the position if the party wanted him to do so. The state secretariat, however, did not consider that option as Achuthanandan does not have the strength to lead a revolt. In fact, the faction headed by Vijayan, which enjoys brute majority in both the secretariat and the state committee, sought to make his position further weak by denying tickets to his supporters.
Vijayan, who was a strong contender for the top post, was sidelined in 2006 because the SNC Lavalin graft case was pending against him. He got the hurdle cleared by approaching the high court and asking it to speed up the trial in the case. A special CBI court at Thiruvananthapuram accepted his discharge petition in November 2013. Vijayan also went through an image makeover following advice from the Left intellectuals, who felt that his dour demeanor would not win the support of the masses.
