Mani sought LDF support to become CM: George


KOTTAYAM: Former Kerala Congress (M) vice chairman P C George has said that party chairman and Finance Minister K M Mani had sought to become Chief Minister with the backing of the Left Democratic Front.

Giving a first-person account of the move to the media here, George said he himself had tried to broker an agreement with Communist Party of India (M) leaders in this regard. “But for the eruption of the bar bribery scandal, the efforts would have fructified,” George said, alleging that the scandal was brought out by none other than Chief Minister Oommen Chandy to wreck Mani’s efforts.

Chandy’s strategy succeeded and Mani chose to be with the United Democratic Front. According to George, the KC (M) leadership was taken into confidence by Mani on the issue of shifting allegiance.

Reacting to a question, George said the LDF would win the local bodies elections hands down.

He felt that the alliance between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam would impact the UDF rather than the LDF. The minority votes that the UDF is banking on will go for the Left this time. This will be reflected in the voting pattern in areas where the Muslim community has a strong presence, he said.

No comments: