Ramesh Chennithala and the CM throne that kept slipping away

The latest turn in the Congress's Kerala leadership decision brings an old pattern in Ramesh Chennithala's career back into sharp focus — the tension between personal ambition and organisational discipline.

"In 2021, when we lost the election due to a combination of factors, I was the Leader of the Opposition and had the support of a majority of MLAs to continue. But the party decided to appoint Satheesan as LoP as part of a change of guard. I was neither consulted nor convinced beforehand, and that did disappoint me. But I did not make an issue of it, not even a murmur."

Ramesh Chennithala's remark, made in the run-up to the 2026 Assembly elections, now reads less like a recollection and more like a prelude to what would eventually happen. Five years later, with the Congress high command naming V D Satheesan as CLP leader and Chief Minister-designate, Chennithala has once again found himself on the receiving end of a decision that bypasses him.

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Yet, even in dissent, his method remains consistent. There is no open rupture. He stayed away from the legislature party meeting, but sent a letter of support: registering protest, but without breaking ranks. On Friday, he broke his silence and said that the chief minister has the prerogative to decide the composition of the Cabinet. "The chief minister will decide who should be included in the Cabinet," he said, when asked whether he would be part of the ministry. This statement is widely seen as an indication that he is open to joining VD Satheesan's cabinet.

"I welcome the high command’s decision. I believe VD Satheesan will have the support of all Congress-UDF workers. I wish him all the best," Chennithala said, a day after the Paravoor MLA was named the next chief minister of Kerala.

For sure, it is the proverbial cup-and-lip situation once again for Chennithala.

Shaped by Karunakaran's political world

Chennithala's political journey is closely intertwined with the legacy of K Karunakaran. He rose as one of Karunakaran's proteges, benefiting from the latter's formidable organisational network and influence within the party. Proximity to Karunakaran was both a political asset and a defining identity in those years. It saw him emerge as one of the youngest ministers in Kerala, reinforcing his image as a leader with both organisational grounding and early visibility.

His eventual distancing from Karunakaran and subsequent role in the reformist group marked an important phase in his evolution — one that demonstrated his ability to navigate factional realignment without self-destruction, a skill he would repeatedly call upon.

A national face under Rajiv

His rise at the national level was equally significant. In the late 1980s, Chennithala earned a reputation as one of the young faces of the Congress, a favourite of Rajiv Gandhi. He and Mamata Banerjee were among the most prominent faces of the Youth Congress at the time, both coming from Left-dominated states. It was a moment of genuine national positioning for a leader who had built his base in Kerala's organisational trenches.

That grounding in organisation rather than disruption, however, has also set the limits of his politics in a party that has since changed considerably around him.

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Friction in the home ministry

As Home Minister in the Oommen Chandy government between 2013 and 2016, Chennithala had to navigate not just governance challenges but complex equations with influential community organisations. His relationship with the NSS and its then General Secretary G Sukumaran Nair became a point of political friction. Nair had strongly backed Chennithala, then KPCC president, for a key position in the UDF ministry in 2011, arguing that a government with a majority of one seat could not afford to leave him out. Despite internal deliberations, Chennithala initially stepped back from immediate induction, a move that provoked the NSS leadership and strained ties.

Though he was eventually inducted as Home Minister later that year, the episode left a residue of mistrust. His handling of the home ministry also drew criticism from opponents who accused him of a pro-Sangh Parivar approach on certain issues, a charge his supporters dismissed as political labelling rather than ideology.

Opposition's most persistent, methodical critic

His most visible political phase came as Leader of the Opposition during the first Pinarayi Vijayan government. Chennithala led sustained campaigns on issues such as the Sprinklr data controversy and the brewery policy, positioning himself as a persistent and methodical critic. He relied on institutional processes and sustained campaigning rather than dramatic confrontation, and for a period, that approach worked. He worked alongside Vijayan during the 2018 floods, showing a capacity for statesmanship when the moment demanded it. He had found a rhythm that combined experience with credibility.

As the 2021 elections approached, however, that momentum faltered. His campaign struggled to convert issue-based opposition into a compelling electoral narrative. His communication appeared increasingly out of sync with the speed and tone of social media. What had been seen as persistence began to be caricatured. A video released by his team during the COVID period — showing him making a call to an NRI named Usman and inquiring about the welfare of non-resident Keralites — backfired significantly when it emerged that Usman was a Congress worker. Opponents seized on it, and it became a stream of online ridicule. It was not merely a messaging failure but a question of tone and timing, areas where the Congress as a whole seemed to lag.

The defeat that changed everything

The 2021 electoral defeat altered his trajectory immediately. The party opted for a change of guard, appointing VD Satheesan as Leader of the Opposition — despite Chennithala having the backing of a majority of MLAs. True to form, he did not mount a public challenge. There were no open displays of dissent, no parallel power centres. His response was contained, almost understated. Yet the sense of having been bypassed lingered, evident in his later remarks.

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In the years that followed, as factional tensions between camps aligned with Satheesan and KC Venugopal surfaced publicly, Chennithala occupied a distinct and restrained space. He became, in many ways, the last visible marker of an older Congress culture in Kerala — one that valued internal negotiation over public confrontation. That restraint, however, has also invited criticism. In a political environment that increasingly rewards visibility and sharp positioning, his style can appear subdued, his reluctance to escalate read as a lack of assertiveness.

Bypassed but not yet broken

The Congress today rewards a different kind of leadership — quicker in communication, sharper in positioning, more aligned with a centralised decision-making structure. In that landscape, Satheesan has emerged as the preferred choice, a leader seen as more attuned to the current political tempo.

For Chennithala, this moment is not abrupt. It is the continuation of a pattern in which he has often been acknowledged but not chosen. The question is not whether he is dissatisfied — that is evident. The question is whether this moment finally pushes him beyond the restraint he has maintained for decades, or whether, as before, he absorbs the setback and remains within the fold.

Have you read our Satheesan's profile? Here it's