Bangalore: Leaders Lose KPCC Membership, Trouble Brewing Against Oscar’s Stand

Daijiworld Media Network – Bangalore (SP)

Bangalore, Sep 14: A number of Congress leaders, who were appointed as district returning officers for the party’s organizational elections held recently, are seething with anger, as they have lost their memberships in Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC).

Initially, the party had prepared a list of 33 KPCC members, but in the guise of the party’s policy, the list has been scrapped altogether. The above leaders, in spite of their best efforts, have not been able to include their name in the list again. It is gathered that these leaders have decided to register their protest against the deletion of their names, at the meeting of the new KPCC members being held here on September 15. They want to know why their names were dropped from the list all of a sudden, and if this is a policy decision of the party, why has it not been made uniformly applicable in all the states in the country.

Head of the All India Congress Committee’s election committee, Oscar Fernandes, who found that names of several Congress leaders, who had functioned as district returning officers in the party’s organizational election, were included in the list of KPCC members, had objected to the same. He had insisted that as per the party’s policy, returning officers cannot become members of the Pradesh Congress committees. He had promised to look into the issue of giving opportunities to the members once the election process is completed.

The leaders are up in arms against the party leadership, because of the fact that they have not yet got KPCC memberships, although the list of KPCC members is about to be published, and the first meeting of the new members is being held on Wednesday. They have been pointing out that in other states, those who have worked as district returning officers for the party have been given memberships in the state committees of the party. They are angry at not being taken care of by the KPCC president and other leaders. They have also not so far received an invitation for the September 15 meeting.

The disgruntled leaders have called for a meeting of likeminded party activists on the evening of Tuesday September 14, to chalk out a strategy to hit back at the party leadership. One of the options being considered by them is to field their own candidate for the KPCC presidentship. About 70 party leaders, including some legislators, are expected to take part in this meeting. Although the head of the state election committee of the party, Jnanadeshikan, has been trying to assuage their feelings, the leaders have told him firmly that they will not go back from their decision to convene a meeting.

The state leaders of the party have decided to vest the power to choose a new president for KPCC with the party high command. A resolution to that effect, is likely to be passed at the meeting on Wednesday. In this backdrop, the move that may be decided by the disgruntled leaders at their meeting today evening gains significance, as any dissidence might block the passage of such a resolution.