Sudhakaran Set to Quit Congress After Rift With High Command

NEW DELHI:
In a major political development ahead of the Kerala Legislative Assembly election, veteran Congress leader and Kannur Lok Sabha MP K. Sudhakaran is set to part ways with the Indian National Congress after his repeated efforts to secure a ticket for the Assembly polls failed to elicit a response from the party’s national leadership.

He also held the post of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president till last year and is a member of the Congress Working Committee.

Sources indicate that discussions over his political future stretched into the early hours of Thursday, with no breakthrough in sight.

Sudhakaran is scheduled to address the media in Delhi, where he is expected to formally outline his next course of action.

In a clear sign of an imminent break, the 77-year-old leader reportedly called several senior party colleagues on Thursday morning to bid farewell.

He is understood to have conveyed his decision to chart an independent political path, with indications that he may float a new party.

He is also weighing the option of contesting as an Independent candidate from the Kannur Assembly constituency.

Sudhakaran remains one of the tallest Congress leaders in Kerala and a dominant figure in Kannur politics.

Known for his combative style, he has long been a fierce critic and political adversary of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the district unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

His political career spans decades, including four terms as a Member of the Legislative Assembly.

In 2009, he was fielded in the Lok Sabha elections from Kannur, a move that paid off with a victory.

Although he suffered a setback in 2014, Sudhakaran staged a comeback by winning the seat in 2019 and successfully retained it in 2024.

His potential exit comes as a significant blow to the Congress in Kerala, particularly in the politically sensitive Kannur region, and could add a new layer of complexity to an already high-stakes electoral contest.