New TNCC chief likely to be named by month end

CHENNAI: The speculation surrounding the ‘election’ of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president is expected to be put to rest before the end of June.

The Congress national high command would most likely take a call on either allowing incumbent KS Alagiri to continue till the 2024 Lok Sabha election or appoint a new comer within a fortnight.

A TNCC senior, unwilling to be quoted, told DT Next that the revamp of AICC and appointments of State Congress presidents would be taken up after the birthday of Rahul Gandhi, which falls on June 19.

“AICC working committee revamp would be first on the agenda of the high command. Appointment of frontal organisation functionaries will be taken up after that. Finally, the election of Pradesh Congress Committee presidents will be done. The TNCC presidency question would be answered before the end of June,” the TNCC senior said.

It has been reliably learnt that nearly half a dozen names from TNCC are doing rounds in the state. Former bureaucrat turned Congress war room head for Karnataka election Sasikanth Senthil, Karur MP S Jothimani, Krishnagiri MP Chellakumar, Velachery MLA Hasan Moulana, Congress deputy legislature party leader Rajesh Kumar and Congress legislature party leader K Selvaperunthagai are the contenders in the TNCC president race.

A Congress senior revealed that Sasikanth Senthil is among the frontrunners in the race, but his relative inexperience and ability to manage squabbles within the party could be a factor working against him.

Jothimani, who enjoys close association with the Gandhis, and Chellakumar MP are also believed to be strong contenders. However, their lack of bonhomie with ally DMK could be their undoing ahead of a crucial election year. The three aforesaid MLAs are currently considered in the party circles as “they too ran” category of contenders.

There is a strong perception that the high command could give incumbent Alagiri a longer run in the event of indecisiveness in choosing a candidate among the contenders. “Should Rahul, Kharge and Venugopal fail to arrive at a consensus in picking one of the above candidates, they could allow Alagiri to continue till the end of the 2024 owing his ability to manage the affairs with the DMK without trouble, “ a TNCC functionary reasoned.