In a broadest hint possible under the circumstances, KC(M) president and State Finance Minister, K. M. Mani has, to the utter shock of ‘big brother’ Congress, said that no party is an untouchable, meaning clearly the BJP. If any party or formation offers to form a secular government, the KC(M) won’t shy away from joining hands with such a formation or party or support the combination, opined Mani.

Asked specifically if he considered the BJP a secular party, Mani said there should not be any prejudice towards any party. Any party can change its policies and its political stand. Every party should be given a chance to declare its stand on secularism, he averred.

In other words, what Mani was trying to put across to the recalcitrant Congress was this: Should the BJP win the election and form a Government at the Centre, he won’t be averse to joining hands with it if that party can provide a stable and secular government.

In the post-poll scenario, if Mani makes good his threat, then that could be the beginning of the unraveling of the Congress-led UDF in the state – a development that cannot but cause grave concern in the Congress camp.

In a way, the Congress is itself to blame for the change in the KC(M)’s stand. Although the Congress announces from the housetop, at regular intervals, that the party treats its allies with equal respect, there has been a clear dichotomy in its profession and practice. Apart from the smaller parties like the Communist Marxist Party (CMP) and the KR Gowri-led Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi (JSS), which have left the UDF, the KC(M), too, has been a victim of the Congress’s big brotherly attitude and arrogance.

Two instances would illustrate the point. First and foremost, it has been a long-standing wish of the KC(M) that its MP, Jose K. Mani, son of the party president, be made a minister in the Union Council of Ministers. And Mani had lobbied hard to realize his dream. But, for inexplicable reasons, the Congress has stubbornly refused to concede Mani’s request. Needless to say, the Congress’s hostile attitude has alienated and angered the KC(M), which has been nursing a grievance against the Congress ever since.

Likewise, the Congress has also rejected the KC(M)’s other demand that the party should be given one more Lok Sabha seat. The KC(M) believes that given its strength in the State Assembly – the party has nine MLAs - the party deserves to be given another Lok Sabha seat. Here again, the Congress has treated the KC(M)’s demand with disdain and indifference. The latest instance has been the rejection by the Congress of the KC(M)’s request to be given the Idukki Lok Sabha seat. The Congress’s adamant No to that demand had created a lot of resentment, and could even have a bearing on the Idukki result – the latest indication is that the Independent backed by the LDF is set to wrest the seat from the Congress.

Last but not the least, the Congress’s double standards on the Kasturirangan report implementation has also widened the rift between the party and the KC(M). Though the Congress has assured the KC(M) that nothing would be done to harm the interests of the farmers in the hill districts – the vote bank of the KC(M) - the latter feels the Congress has not done all that it could to allay the misgivings of the farmers in the matter. The result has been further bitterness between the Congress and the KC(M).

With all the exit polls predicting that the Narendra Modi-led BJP could form the next government at the Centre, the KC(M) thinks the party has a golden opportunity to realize its longstanding twin dream: a ministerial berth for Mani’s son at the Centre and an additional Lok Sabha seat as well. Hence the visible softening of the KC(M)’s attitude towards the BJP. (IPA Service)