The Congress Screening Committee Chairman, Madhusudan Mistry, stated that the final decision on whether sitting party MPs will contest the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections rests with the Congress high command. Mistry emphasized that this decision involves a significant policy choice. He expressed confidence in the party leadership’s ability to make an informed decision and hinted that the Congress candidate list could be unveiled by the end of the month.
Mistry highlighted that the Screening Committee would evaluate various factors before selecting candidates, indicating that survey reports on sitting MLAs might not be the sole determining factor. He mentioned that a detailed scrutiny of multiple aspects would guide the candidate selection process.
During his visit to Kerala, Mistry is conducting meetings of the Congress screening committee and engaging with party leaders at different levels. He is scheduled to meet senior leaders over the next two days. The state leadership had previously requested District Congress Committee (DCC) Presidents to submit panels of potential candidates, which will play a crucial role in the Screening Committee’s discussions.
The Congress is yet to announce whether the first list of candidates will be released by Friday, coinciding with the commencement of Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan’s statewide yatra, a development closely monitored in political circles. Concurrently, discussions on seat-sharing with allies in the United Democratic Front (UDF) have commenced at the state party leadership level.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, the Congress contested 93 out of the 140 seats in the Kerala Legislative Assembly. Other constituents of the UDF, such as IUML, Kerala Congress-M, RSP, NCK, Kerala Congress-Jacob, CMP, and RMPI, also contested various seats. Additionally, two Independents were supported by the front. This time, the Forward Bloc is expected to receive one seat, and the candidature of former Left-backed independent legislator P.V. Anvar for the Beypore constituency has been approved.
