Throwing the Congress leadership's warning to the wind, senior leader K V Thomas on Thursday said he will attend a seminar to be held as part of the CPM's ongoing 23rd Party Congress in Kannur.
The former Union minister announced his decision at a press meet in Kochi in which he slammed the Congress leadership for barring him, along with other Congress leaders, from attending the seminar. Thomas said he will attend the seminar on 'centre-state relations' as it's a national issue.
“This is a national issue. Those opposing BJP and communalism should stand together. Congress has its own limitations. There maybe issues between the Congress and CPM in Kerala. It should be kept aside. I am going to attend the programme. Congress has to rectify its mistake,” he said.
He said he will not join another party. “I'm a born Congressman. I will be with the party till my end,” he said.
KPCC president K Sudhakaran had on Wednesday warned that Thomas will have to face expulsion from the party if he decides to attend the seminar violating party diktat. Asked about this Thomas said, “I'm an AICC member. Only the AICC can expel me,” he said.
'KPCC will ask AICC to take action against Thomas'
KPCC president K Sudhakaran on Thursday said the state unit of the party will recommend the AICC to take disciplinary action against Thomas if he attends the seminar.
“I still hope that he will not attend the event. If he goes to the programme, the KPCC will ask the AICC to take action against him. He is a senior leader and it will be a loss to the pasrty if he goes out. However, shouldn't a party worker abide by party decisions,” Sudhakaran told media persons.
'Yechury invited'
Thomas said he was invited to the seminar by CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury when he met the latter in Delhi in March first week. He said he had informed Congress president Sonia Gandhi and AICC general secretary in charge of Kerala, Tariq Anwar, about the invite.
The CPM had invited Congress MP Shashi Tharoor also to another seminar. However, the Congress state leadership barred both of them from attending the event, citing the ongoing protest against the CPM-led government's aggressive push for the SilverLine semi high-speed rail project. Both Tharoor and Thomas were reluctant to share the Congress' fierce stance against the mega project. Though both the leaders approached the AICC leadership seeking permission to attend the CPM event, the central leadership asked them to abide by the state leadership's decision.
Thomas has been sharing a bitter relationship with the Congress ever since he was denied seat to contest the 2019 general elections.
“I was the only sitting MP of the Congress who was denied seat to contest. I waited for one year and a half, not for a parliamentary post but for a party position. There was no response,” he said.
“Though I was made a KPCC working president ahead of the last assembly polls, after four months I came to know that I was removed from the post only through media,” he said.
Thomas was critical of both the state leadership and Rahul Gandhi. He pointed out the state leadership's failure in taking forward the membership campaign. “Since 2018 December, I have not been given an appointment to meet Rahul Gandhi,” he said.