By IANS
Thiruvananthapuram : Former Kerala chief minister K. Karunakaran, making a valiant attempt to return to the Congress, Wednesday dissociated himself from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
“Henceforth, NCP will have only the blessings of Karunakaran because he has informed that he will be unable to be actively involved in the affairs of party on account of health problems,” his son and state NCP president K. Muraleedharan told reporters here after a party meeting.
Asked if this meant Karunakaran was all ready to return to the Congress, Muraleedharan shot back by saying: “We don’t think this means he will join the Congress.
“Karunakaran has been time and again been treated with disdain by the Congress party and even if he decides to join the Congress, the doors of our party will always be open for him to return because we know he will have a bad time in the Congress,” he added.
Karunakaran, a four-time chief minister, quit the Congress two years ago to launch his own outfit, which was merged into the NCP recently. Of late, he has been planning to return to the Congress.
His hopes were dashed when Mohsina Kidwai, the party’s general secretary in charge of the state, Monday ruled out a meeting with the veteran during her visit here.
Congress source, however, indicate the Congress leadership will allow the veteran to return. Top leaders like Defence Minister A.K. Antony and former close aides of Karunakaran in the Congress who are opposed to Leader of Opposition Oommen Chandy and state party president Ramesh Chennithala are determined to bring him back to checkmate the duo.