Rift in Kerala unit of Loktantrik Janata Dal

A faction led by party state general secretaries Sheikh P Harris and V Surendran Pillai convened a meeting of party leaders and demanded Shreyam Kumar's resignation

The Loktantrik Janata Dal (LJD) in Kerala is likely to split with a section of leaders convening a meeting and openly demanding the party state president to quit.

LJD, which is a coalition partner of the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala, was facing internal rift following the Assembly elections earlier this year. Party state president and Rajya Sabha MP M V Shreyams Kumar contested the assembly polls from Kalpetta in Wayanad and was defeated.

A faction led by party state general secretaries Sheikh P Harris and V Surendran Pillai convened a meeting of party leaders in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday and demanded Shreyam Kumar's resignation accusing him of weakening the party. They said that the party was not getting due consideration in the left front. They also claimed that the party's lone MLA K P Mohanan was also with them.

Shreyams Kumar later reacted that it was the party state committee to decide whether he should resign or not. The state committee would be held on November 20.

The dissident leaders had also taken up their grievances with the party national leadership. But the national leadership is unlikely to take tough stand against Shreyams Kumar as he is the lone Rajya Sabha MP of the party, said sources.

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