Sunny Joseph takes charge as Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president

Thiruvananthapuram: Senior leader and three-time MLA Sunny Joseph officially assumed charge as the new president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) on Monday. At a ceremony held at the party headquarters, outgoing president K. Sudhakaran formally handed over the leadership of the state unit to Joseph.

Besides Joseph, P. C. Vishnunath MLA, Shafi Parambil MP, and A. P. Anil Kumar MLA assumed office as working presidents of the state Congress, and Adoor Prakash MP took charge as the UDF convener during the ceremony.

Several party leaders and workers gathered at the headquarters to witness the long-awaited leadership change ahead of the upcoming crucial local body polls and the state assembly election.

Before heading to the KPCC headquarters, Sunny Joseph visited Congress veteran A K Antony at his residence, seeking his support and blessings for the new role.

Later, addressing reporters, Antony expressed his full confidence in the new team under Joseph. He stated that the AICC leadership has entrusted them with the responsibility of steering the Congress-led UDF back to power in Kerala in the upcoming Assembly elections.

"I have complete confidence that the new team led by Joseph can fulfil their responsibility. If they can win the trust of all sections of people besides strengthening the Congress and the UDF, we can achieve a greater victory in 2026 than the party garnered in 2001," he said.

On May 8, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) carried out a significant leadership overhaul in Kerala, replacing K. Sudhakaran with three-time MLA Sunny Joseph as the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, bringing an end to weeks of speculation over the leadership change.

Despite Sudhakaran’s objections to his removal from the KPCC post, the party high command proceeded with the decision, aiming to introduce fresh leadership ahead of the crucial state elections.

To maintain internal balance within the party unit in Kerala, Sudhakaran has been appointed as a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee (CWC).

(inputs from PTI)