Team News Riveting
Kochi, March 14
The simmering differences within the Kerala Congress today spilled out in open as party women wing chief not only resigned but also tonsured her head in protest.
“I am protesting against the Congress party for neglecting female candidates in this election,” Lathika Subhash, President of Kerala Pradesh Mahila Congress, said after announcing her resignation from the party post on Sunday. The development came after the party declared its list of candidates for the ensuing Assembly elections.
Dramatic scenes were created at the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram as Subhash sat down on a chair, put a cloth around her neck and then tonsured her head. The event was a symbol of her resignation and protest against denying tickets to contest the state polls. She had apprised the party leaders about her interest to contest from Ettumanoor, which is her native place.
KPCC Mullappally Ramachandran finally announced the candidate list for the 2021 Kerala Assembly elections, in New Delhi. However, back home, in Kerala, it only resulted in a huge outburst among the party workers, with the first reaction from Lathika, followed by mass resignations by members from other organisations of the party.
Of the 86 candidates the KPCC president announced on Sunday, women have been fielded in only nine seats. Speaking to the media after Mullapally Ramachandran announced the list, Lathika pointed out that women candidates were neglected by the Congress.
“Why are more women not included in the list? We asked for 20 per cent of the seats for women on the list. Kerala Students Union President and Youth Congress president also got a seat. Then why did the Mahila Congress President not get a seat? I am not fighting for me, but I am fighting as a representative of more women,” said Lathika.
“I started working for the Congress when I was 16. I kept the Congress close to my heart for the last 40 years. I am not protesting because I was denied a seat, but because the Mahila Congress was neglected. My protest is to ensure at least the next president of the Mahila Congress is not neglected in future,” she added.
Lathika also added that she will neither join any other party nor leave the Congress.
