Thiruvananthapuram

Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan on Thursday said the Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) respect each other’s autonomy in selecting legislative party leaders and do not interfere in one another’s leadership choices.

Responding to reports that the IUML was backing V. D. Satheesan for the chief minister’s post, Kuzhalnadan urged the media not to create confusion around the issue.

Describing the IUML as the backbone of the UDF, he said the two parties have consistently supported each other during political crises.

“Whenever the UDF or Congress faced difficulties, the IUML stood firmly for the unity of the front. Likewise, whenever the IUML faced political or physical attacks, the Congress protected it,” he said.

He stressed that the alliance partners function with mutual respect and do not dictate each other’s internal leadership decisions.

“Will Congress decide who should lead the IUML in the Assembly? We never interfere in who should be ministers or leaders in allied parties. So there is no need for confusion,” he added.

Kuzhalnadan said the chief minister would be chosen according to the Congress party’s established process and that whoever the party selects would assume the post.

He credited the UDF’s sweeping victory in the Kerala Assembly polls to the sustained efforts and sacrifices of party workers over the past decade.

“This mandate belongs to the party and its workers. Many of them faced attacks, imprisonment and hardships over the last 10 years. This victory did not come overnight,” he said.

The Congress legislator also expressed confidence in the party leadership, saying the Congress, as a national party with experience in choosing several prime ministers and chief ministers, was capable of making the right decision.

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The debate over Kerala’s next chief minister has intensified after the UDF’s electoral win, with the names of V. D. Satheesan, K. C. Venugopal and Ramesh Chennithala being discussed for the top post.