The position that CPI(M) veteran V.S. Achuthanandan would hold in the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) as the Pinarayi Vijayan Cabinet gets down to work has become the talking point in the State with visuals in the print and electronic media showing him reading a piece of paper containing jottings about the positions he wants or has been offered.
The incident, according to TV grabs, took place when Mr. Achuthanandan was attending the swearing-in of the new Cabinet at the Central Stadium here on Wednesday. A close-up of the small note had been published by a Malayalam daily on Thursday.
A visual sequence aired by a Malayalam TV channel later in the day shows him receiving a piece of paper from an aide, reading it closely and handing it over to CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, who was seated next to him. The note, as it appears in the visuals, has three points: Left Front Chairman, Cabinet rank, and re-induction into the State secretariat of the party.
In New Delhi, Mr. Yechury confirmed receipt of the note from Mr. Achuthanandan and said that the party would discuss the points contained in it and take a decision.
The CPI(M) Polit Bureau is meeting in Delhi on Sunday and a decision on the issue could well be taken there. When Mr. Vijayan was chosen to be the Chief Minister, the CPI(M) leadership had offered to accommodate Mr. Achuthanandan with an appropriate position. However, he had turned it down then. The subsequent events show that after dithering initially, the CPI(M) veteran has decided to accept or perhaps wishes to be made the LDF chairman with Cabinet rank and return to the CPI(M) State secretariat.
At the swearing-in ceremony, VS was seen handing over a note to Sitaram Yechury with three points — Left Front Chairman, Cabinet rank, and re-induction into the State secretariat.
