Mani in crisis again; legal and political; adversaries upbeat

Kottayam: The dismissal of the Vigilance Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) report regarding KM Mani's complicity in the bar bribe case, is bound to cause a setback for the Kerala Congress party and its supremo KM Mani.

The judgment in the first place will weaken Mani's standing in the United Democratic Front (UDF), and by implication lessen his prospects in the political equations around the Lok Sabha elections coming up.

Although no immediate risk exists for Mani, the sword of the legal case of bribery hanging over Mani may weaken the party gradually. Mani's adversaries within the party may have cause to privately rejoice with his prestige hurt.

On the other hand, equally in trouble are those leaders in the UDF who brought back Mani to the front with fanfare, after he had to quit the cabinet owing to the bar bribery scam and later left the UDF itself. Apparently those leaders would not have anticipated such a setback, especially when there was the general reading that the LDF leadership either was not so intent on bringing Mani to his knee through the case. Those leaders are in a tight spot unable to staunchly defend and shield Mani.

Within the Congress again, former KPCC president VM Sudheeran may see his position strengthened, as he had stood strongly against bringing Mani back to the fold, and expressed himself against gifting the Rajya Sabha seat to Mani's party. Sudheeran will now hold his high before his detractors at that time.

Moves may also be made within the Congress to retake the Lok Sabha seat of Kottayam from Kerala Congress. Both the 'A' and 'I' factions of Congress are generally in a mood to back such moves against a politically thinned Mani. Most of the Congress leadership in central Kerala are also reportedly against Kerala Congress.

In Congress's youth wing, anti-Mani voices abound. The assessment of Youth Congress is that even when Mani stood out of UDF, Congress was able to remain strong in Kottayam. If Congress's rivals raise their pitch on the bar bribery case in the new background, that may dim the prospects of the Congress to win more seats in the Lok Sabha election.

CPM which for a while had yearned to take Mani along and into the LDF, is also likely to harden its stance towards him and Kerala Congress. The party which had already ditched Mani in the build up to the Chengannur assembly by-poll, is reportedly waiting for the return of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan to firm up its strategy in the new scenario.