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Will announce pick for LoP after Cong announces CM: LDF
Kerala's LDF will announce its Leader of Opposition after Congress names its chief minister. Contenders include Pinarayi Vijayan and KN Balagopal.
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Kerala said on Tuesday that it will announce its Leader of Opposition (LoP) soon after the Congress declares its nominee for the chief minister’s post.
Though the CPI(M) Politburo met in Delhi on May 10 and 11, followed by the party’s state leadership meeting on Tuesday, no selection was announced. Among the contenders for the post are outgoing chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and former state finance minister KN Balagopal. Former ministers Saji Cheriyan and PA Mohammed Riyas are also said to be in the reckoning.
“Let the Congress declare its chief ministerial face first. That’s more important as a government needs to be formed here. The ministers also need to be named. As soon as the CM is declared, the CPI(M) will announce its leader of opposition,” said LDF convenor TP Ramakrishnan.
He added that the CPI(M)’s nominee for LoP will be discussed within the LDF and finalised before the announcement.
On Monday, outgoing CM Vijayan moved into a rented house in the Bakery junction neighbourhood of Thiruvananthapuram after vacating his official residence of ‘Cliff House.’ If he is named as the LoP, he will move into ‘Cantonment House’, the official residence of the LoP in the state capital.
Meanwhile, the LDF convenor said the CPI’s demand for the deputy LoP post in the Assembly has not been discussed within the coalition. He declined to address CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam’s public claim for the post.
