Karunakaran to quit Cong, form new party in Feb

Veteran Congressman-turned rebel in Karala, K Karunakaran yesterday renounced his 40-year association with the Congress and announced that he was leaving to form a new party "" the Indira National Congress""next month.

That Karunakaran had specified a timeframe led leaders in Delhi, who have had long and protracted negotiations with him, to believe that he was still indulging in brinkmanship.

But political analysts in Kerala said because of a split between Karunakaran's two children - K Muraleedharan (also the chief of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee) and K Padmaja - on the wisdom of forming a new party, "anything could happen".

Muraleedharan said he was not supporting his father's plans, thereby keeping one window of negotiation open with the Congress high command.

Future allies of the veteran leader""like the CPI(M) led by Pinarayi Vijayan and the Muslim League""were silent on whether they would back "Leader" (as he is known) but Chief Minister AK Antony said he did not think the party would split, indicating that some people had been weaned away from the Karunakaran faction.

However, continuing to grandstand, Karunakaran said he was parting ways from the party as he had no other option to save the people of Kerala and the "real Congressmen".

He had demanded that Antony be replaced as the chief minister.

Making the announcement at a group convention , he said the new party would have the picture of Indira Gandhi as its symbol.

Defeating the "anti-Karun-akaranists" in the Congress would be the main agenda of his party, he said, amidst thunderous applause from his followers who had come to attend the convention.

Of the 63 Congress MLAs, 19 including two ministers attended the meet.

Karunakaran ridiculed reports that he would have agreed to a 'cease-fire' with his arch foe chief minister AK Antony if Muralidharan was offered a cabinet berth.

Although Karunakaran's move will not have the effect of toppling the Antony-led government because his MLAs are in a minority, the fresh rebellion represents yet another headache for the high command.

By announcing his intention (for the second time since October 2003) that he was forming a new party, Karunakaran has indulged in an anti-party act. But punishing him for this could destabilise the coalition politics in Kerala.

Congress leaders like Vayalar Ravi were confident that Karunakaran would be persuaded to resile from his stand. However, in Kerala, Congress leaders observed that there was a 50 per cent chance the Congress being defeated in at leasst five of the 20 Lok Sabha seats because of the influence exercised by Karunakaran.

It was Karunakaran who ensured the victory of the CPI M in the Ernakulam byelection by working against the official Congress candidate. No action was taken against him.