KANNUR: For Congressmen here, his name epitomises courage, confidence and grit. For them, it has always been an uphill task to take the party forward braving the high walls of resistance in the CPM strongholds here and K Sudhakaran, always stood up for them during the times of agony, despair and hopelessness.
Many a time, he had brought them back from the the precipice of humiliation and the ashes of defeat to lead them to victory and honour. They see hope for the Congress when he ascends the party's topmost post in the state and they believe that his relentless fight in one of the toughest political battlegrounds in the state for the party has been rewarded in the end.
"Congress workers in Kannur are elated to see Sudhakarettan(as Sudhakaran is affectionately called) being elevated to the post of KPCC president," said Manoj Parakkadi, a Congress worker. "We are sure the party will benefit a lot from this decision as he will be able to inspire and encourage Congressmen across the state through his vibrant leadership," he said.
Barely months ago, Sudhakaran had been criticised by many for his hesitancy to take on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the latter's home constituency of Dharmmadom. But, Sudhakaran had shrugged off the criticism saying that he was not afraid to take on Pinarayi at Dharmmadom or in any other constituency. The only problem, he had said, was the lack of time available to prepare for such an epic battle. "I have fought many elections. Had won some, lost some. I am not a person who retreats from battle on seeing the stature of the opponent. The only problem here is that, I won't get enough time to prepare for a big battle like this," he had told reporters then.
While talking to reporters, Sudhakaran recalled that in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections which he won, losing LDF candidate P K Sreemathi had garnered very few votes in the Dharmmadom assembly segment. "Remember, Pinarayi had a majority of 36,000 votes in Dharmmadom," he said. Had the high command given him any hints regarding the fact that he will have to take on Pinarayi in Dharmmadom some three or four months back, Sudhakaran said that he would have entered the fray. Such is the confidence of the man, who believes that, he can make inroads into CPM citadels in the district. During the campaign for the 2019 polls, a supremely confident Sudhakaran had told The New Indian Express," I will definitely win and secure a majority of at least 50,000 votes, if the administration were able to stop bogus voting in CPM strongholds."
Incidentally, Sudhakaran belongs to the generation of the all-powerful CPM stalwarts from the region -- Pinarayi, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, P Jayarajan, M V Jayarajan, E P Jayarajan and M V Govindan -- who command fierce loyalty from party cadre and he had to brave their political might to take the Congress forward in the district.
"A long cherished dream of Congress workers in Kannur has come true with K Sudhakaran becoming the KPCC chief. I am sure that he will be able to lead the party back to its halcyon days. A fighter to the core, Sudhakaran will definitely put pressure on the government and the CPM in particular in the state," said DCC president Satheeshan Pacheni.