Congress finally decides for Kerala: VD Satheesan to be the new CM

Congress has chosen VD Satheesan as Kerala’s 13th Chief Minister after intense internal deliberations in Delhi. The veteran legislator, known for his sharp Assembly performances and role as Leader of Opposition, represents a generational shift as the party seeks renewed political momentum in Kerala

New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram: After days of suspense, endless speculation and high-voltage lobbying stretching from Thiruvananthapuram to Delhi, the Congress high command finally picked VD Satheesan as Kerala’s 13th Chief Minister, marking what many within the party describe as the formal arrival of a new generation at the helm of Kerala politics.

The announcement was made in Delhi by Congress top leaders Deepadas Munshi, Mukul Wasnik and Ajay Maken. The decision, delayed till the very edge of political exhaustion, was conveyed with characteristic Congress drama.

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Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal, who was in Delhi through the final rounds of consultations, was summoned for a meeting with Rahul Gandhi before being informed of the leadership decision.

Senior leader Ramesh Chennithala, meanwhile, received the message through a closed-door telephone call from Rahul that the race was over and Satheesan had got the nod.

For Satheesan, the elevation caps a remarkable political rise that mirrors the Congress party’s attempt to reinvent itself in Kerala after years of factional fatigue and electoral setbacks.

Born in Kochi district and turning 62 later this month, Satheesan built his political identity not through backroom factional arithmetic but through relentless Assembly performances and organisational work. A lawyer by profession, he entered the Assembly from Paravur in 2001 and soon earned a reputation as one of the Congress party’s sharpest debaters.

Armed with statistics, sarcasm and theatrical timing, Satheesan became a familiar tormentor of the Left benches.

Ironically, his biggest breakthrough came after one of the Congress party’s darkest moments. Following the UDF’s crushing defeat in the 2021 Assembly elections, Satheesan was unexpectedly chosen as Leader of the Opposition, initially viewed by many as a compromise candidate amid bitter internal rivalries.

Instead, he transformed the role into a political launch pad. Whether it was the gold smuggling controversy, the AI camera allegations or repeated attacks on the Vijayan government over law and order, Satheesan steadily positioned himself as the most visible and aggressive face of anti-Left politics in Kerala.

Unlike many Congress veterans, Satheesan was never seen as fully belonging to either the old “A” or “I” faction camps that dominated Congress politics in Kerala for decades. That relative independence helped him attract younger legislators and grassroots workers hungry for generational change. His critics within the party often accuse him of centralising decision-making and moving with political impatience.

Yet even detractors concede that among the Congress leadership, Satheesan currently enjoys perhaps the strongest public connect. Satheesan, in the morning, along with his immediate family members, hit the road to the state capital and reached his official residence of the past five years as Leader of Opposition.

He reached minutes before the AICC made the announcement, and without saying a word, he waded through the huge crowd that had gathered at his official residence. Now, as he prepares to move from the Opposition benches to the Chief Minister’s chair, Satheesan carries expectations far larger than merely running a government.

His ascent signals the Congress party’s attempt to hand Kerala’s political steering wheel to a younger, more combative and media-savvy generation ready to take on the formidable legacy of outgoing Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.