Ending more than a week- long suspense, dissident Kerala Congress (M) Vice-Chairman P C George was on Tuesday removed from the post of government Chief Whip by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy who accepted the ruling UDF partner's demand after parleys to avert the action failed.
The decision to accept the demand of KC(M), led by Finance Minister K M Mani, was announced by Mr Chandy after holding discussions with his senior cabinet colleagues P K Kunhalikutty and Ramesh Chennithala and Mr George in Thiruvanthapuram on Tuesday night.
Mr George has been barred from attending the UDF liaison committee meeting as the representative of KC-M, which is the third largest partner of the ruling front with nine MLAs.
With KC-M supremo Mani, against whom Mr George had been making embarrassing public statements, sticking to his demand, UDF leaders had no other option but to remove him from the Chief Whip post.
Asked whether Mr George would continue to be part of UDF, Mr Chandy said he had not been expelled from KC-M and it was for him to decide whether to continue in UDF.
However, he strongly criticised Mr Mani with whom he had fallen apart beyond reconciliation.
But Mr Mani was not in favour of keeping Mr George in the Front as a separate party and wanted him to continue in the party by accepting a 'small punishment.' KC-M was irked with Mr George after he made several public remarks against Mr Mani after he presented the budget on March 13 in the assembly amidst protest by LDF opposition.
The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau had recently registered a case against Mr Mani in connection with the charge that he had accepted bribe from bar owners to renew liquor licences.
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