Congress rebels spar in Pala municipality in Kerala, exposes cracks in ruling combine

Congress rebels spar in Pala municipality in Kerala, exposes cracks in ruling combine Published – August 20, 2026 07: 49 pm IST – KOTTAYAM.

Key points

• Mathews blamed DCC president Nattakom Suresh for aggravating the crisis in the municipality and paving the way for the collapse of the UDF administration.
• The DCC president should not have acted on the directions of the Independent Collective.
• As someone who loves the Congress and stands with the party, Biju Mathews' statement has caused me a lot of difficulty.
• Pulikkakandam too has filed a petition seeking the disqualification of Maya Rahul.
• Thaiparambil, nevertheless, distanced himself from the remarks, saying Mr.

In practice, a day after the LDF-led ruling combine secured control of Pala municipality with the backing of rebel Congress councillors, cracks have begun to show within the group, with differences among the rebels spilling into the open.

For context, the discord surfaced after rebel councillors Biju Mathews and Tony Thaiparambil took divergent positions on a decision by the District Congress Committee to initiate legal action against the rebels.

Speaking to the media, Mr. Mathews blamed DCC president Nattakom Suresh for aggravating the crisis in the municipality and paving the way for the collapse of the UDF administration. He alleged that Mr.Suresh had acted at the behest of the Independent Collective led by Binu Pulikkakandam and his family, which, he asserted, was at the root of the difficulties in the municipality.

"The DCC president should not have acted on the directions of the Independent Collective. He should have understood the sentiments of Congress councillors in Pala municipality. Had he done so, Congress councillor Riya Cheerankuzhy would have been the chairperson now, " he remarked.

Mr. Thaiparambil, nevertheless, distanced himself from the remarks, saying Mr. Mathews had created the statement without the knowledge or consent of the other rebel councillors.

"As someone who loves the Congress and stands with the party, Biju Mathews' statement has caused me a lot of difficulty. As DCC president, Nattakom Suresh was only doing his duty. It is not right to create such statements against him, " Mr. Thaiparambil remarked.

In practice, the UDF parliamentary party additionally strongly objected to Mr. Mathews' remarks. At a session chaired by parliamentary party leader Sebastian J. Panakkal, members cautioned that UDF workers would not remain silent over moves against the DCC president.

Meanwhile, Mr.Panakkal has additionally approached the State Election Commission seeking the disqualification of four councillors who had voted in favour of the LDF's no-confidence motion against UDF-backed chairperson Diya Pulikkakandam. Independent Collective leader Mr. Pulikkakandam too has filed a petition seeking the disqualification of Maya Rahul. This person was elected chairperson on Wednesday with the backing of the LDF.

In short, congress rebels spar in Pala municipality in Kerala, exposes cracks in ruling is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.