Ramesh Chennithala likely to be made Congress General SecretarY

New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram, June 18 Former Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly, Ramesh Chennithala, who did not get a second term in the post, is likely to be made a party General Secretary.

While Chennithala had majority support of the Congress legislators for a second term, the party high command decided to go in for V.D. Satheesan.

For the past two decades, the state Congress unit has been divided into factions led by Chennithala and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy. However, following the drubbing in the April 6 Assembly polls where Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan led the Left to an unprecedented second term, the high command decided to step in and not give way to the factions.

First they brought in Satheesan, and last week, sprang yet another surprise, when K. Sudhakaran was made the state party chief.

Following Sudhakaran's appointment, Chennithala was called to come to Delhi by senior party leader Rahul Gandhi. After they met on Friday, Chennithala said that the meeting went off very well.

"I feel a lot relieved and feel very good after the meeting. Even though my first priority is Kerala, I will accept any task that the party gives me," said Chennithala, who is presently only a legislator.

With Assembly elections due in Punjab and Gujarat next year, Chennithala, who was a Lok Sabha member and a member of the Congress Working Committee, seems set to get a new party post as he is fluent in Hindi and has a wide circle of party leaders as good friends.