Faction-riddled Tamil Nadu Congress wants a new president — and there are many contenders

In the faction-riddled Tamil Nadu Congress, the trigger for the leadership change demand seems to be the clash that broke out between supporters of Alagiri and those of MLA and treasurer Ruby Manoharan at the party headquarters in Chennai on 15 November.

Though the TNCC Disciplinary Action Committee suspended Ruby Manoharan from the party over the clashes, the suspension was stayed by AICC Tamil Nadu in-charge Dinesh Gundu Rao on the grounds that proper procedure was not followed. This yet again signalled that all was not well within the TNCC.

It didn’t end there. Some Tamil Nadu Congress leaders, like legislative party chief Selvaperunthagai, EVKS Elangovan, KV Thangabalu, etc, called on AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi demanding that Alagiri be replaced.

While Congress MP Karti Chidambaram has openly stated that he would get rid of factionalism in the TNCC if he is made state chief, there are other Congress MPs representing constituencies in South, North and Central Tamil Nadu like Manickam Tagore, Jothimani, Chellakumar among those eyeing the post.

The name of a Tamil Nadu Congress MLA too is doing the rounds.

Whether a change will happen or not remains to be seen. But clearly the party could do with someone who will take on the young and publicly fierce BJP state chief Annamalai.