Congress leader KP Anil Kumar quits party, joins CPI-M

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 14 (IANS) Top Congress leader K.P. Anil Kumar on Tuesday quit the Congress party which he worked closely for the past 43 years, and announced he will remain in public domain and will work closely with the CPI-M.

Kumar was the organisation general secretary of the Congress party and served as general secretary under four State Congress presidents - Ramesh Chennithala, V.M. Sudheeran, M.M. Hassan and Mullapally Ramachandran.

Speaking to the media here Kumar said he entered the Congress party when he was four years old holding the hands of his grandfather, a freedom fighter in Kozhikode and campaigned for the party.

"For 43 long years my sweat and blood was given to the Congress party. I began as an office bearer with the KSU (the student's wing of the Congress party) and then went on to become the Youth Congress president from 2002 to 2007. I knew only the Congress ideology and worked hard and even when I was treated badly, I kept quiet and now I feel my time is up. The foundation of the Congress party is shaken and we have a new leadership of the party in Kerala and I feel it's time for me to go and I am quitting the Congress party. I am now going to the CPI-M party headquarters from where I will continue my work as a public person, as it's one party which is secular and upholds secular principles," said Kumar.

Kumar who hails from Kozhikode was given a seat to contest the Koilandy assembly seat in 2011 but he lost and in the 2016 and 2021 assembly elections, even though his name figured in the list, at the last moment he was dropped.

Ever since K. Sudhakaran, the Congress Lok Sabha member, was appointed president of the state unit and V.D. Satheesan the Leader of Opposition, there have been a few senior leaders like Kumar who has left the party.

"Things have gone from bad to worse ever since K.C. Venugopal (AICC general secretary-organisation) appears to have taken over the Kerala unit of the party in a big way. Everything has gone wary ever since he took over and he is adamant that everything should take place with his knowledge and he will be the person responsible for the present state of affairs in the Congress party," added Kumar.

After reaching the CPI-M headquarters he said his arrival in the CPI-M is without any condition.

"I am confident that I can continue my public work with my heads held high in the company of the CPI-M," said Kumar.

He was received by the top brass of the CPI-M including politburo members Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, M.A. Baby and S. Ramachandran Pillai besides top state leader A. Ananthan.

Balakrishnan draped Kumar in the traditional red shawl of the CPI-M.

Present along with Kumar at the CPI-M headquarters was P.S. Prasanth who was a Congress candidate at the 2021 assembly polls but quit the party and joined the CPI-M a few weeks back.

Balakrishnan told the media that the new leadership of the Congress party had said none will leave the Congress party, but in reality it's been a huge rush of top leaders leaving the party.

"We heard all what Kumar was saying at his press meet and we whole heartedly welcome Kumar into our fold, similar to that we gave Prasanth. People of Kerala now realise, it's only the CPI-M which can take the state forward. The rank and file of the Congress have lost the faith in both the national and state leadership. We have always treated people who join us with respect," said Balakrishnan.