Thrissur election debacle: DCC prez, UDF chief quit

Thrissur: Thrissur DCC president Jose Vallur and UDF district chairman M P Vincent tendered their resignations on Monday amid dramatic scenes at the DCC office.
Vallur said he is resigning owning up the moral responsibility for the defeat of UDF candidate K Muraleedharan in Thrissur Lok Sabha seat and the subsequent clashes in the party office. Vincent said he was owning up the responsibility for the post-election clashes in the party office.There are reports that the party leadership had asked them to step down, and gave them time to do so.
According to KPCC general secretary T U Radhakrishnan, KPCC president K Sudhakaran has accepted the resignation of Vallur and opposition leader V D Satheesan has accepted the resignation of Vincent.
Radhakrishnan said Palakkad MP V K Sreekandan has been given temporary charge of Thrissur DCC. Radhakrishnan said this arrangement would continue for about a month, and in the meanwhile a whole new set up would be hoisted in the party unit in Thrissur.
The KPCC has also constituted a panel comprising K C Joseph, Kalpetta MLA T Siddique and INTUC state president R Chandrasekharan to probe the defeat of Muraleedharan.
The KPCC president has also suspended party office-bearers Sajeevan Kuriachira and M L Baby, who had complained that they were attacked by Vallur and his supporters. There are rumblings in the party for not taking action against the supporters of Vallur, who had allegedly attacked Kuriachira and Baby.
In another development, the Youth Congress national secretary in-charge of Kerala, Pushpalatha C B has suspended three leaders of the organization, who had publicly demanded the resignation of Vallur and T N Prathapan.
The suspended leaders are state general secretary Kavya Ranjit and state secretaries Muhammed Hashim and Ebimon Thomas.
Ruckus in DCC
Earlier in the day, a group of supporters of Vallur shouted slogans supporting him when he came to the DCC office. Minor clashes were reported between the supporters of Vallur and his opponents. Police ensured that the situation did not go out of control. Posters supporting Vallur were also affixed in different parts of the city.