Kerala Congress (Joseph) Voices Displeasure Over Delay in Granting Cabinet-Rank Position to P J Joseph

KOTTAYAM: Close on the heels of UDF convener Adoor Prakash making a public outburst over the lack of coordination between the government and the coalition, the Kerala Congress (Joseph) has also voiced its displeasure over the delay in granting a deserving cabinet-rank position to its senior leader P J Joseph. Though the party has refrained from making the issue a public flashpoint within the coalition, party sources said executive chairman and minister Mons Joseph would soon meet Chief Minister V D Satheesan to reiterate the demand. The party maintains that there was an understanding within the ruling front to accommodate P J Joseph in a cabinet-rank position. “The party is particularly aggrieved that its senior leader is being sidelined even as cabinet-rank positions have been allotted to the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and the Forward Bloc, which did not contest a single seat in the assembly election, within the UDF government,” said a senior KC leader. The leaders said the UDF leadership had assured P J Joseph a key cabinet-rank position when he stepped aside from contesting the previous assembly elections.