'Oommen Chandy always had time for his people and valued their voices.' 'There was no rest for him as long as the betterment of his fellow citizens was at stake.' Ambassador Venu Rajamony, who knew the former Kerala chief minister for half a century, salutes a beloved leader who worked tirelessly for the welfare of its people.
'I have never seen a common man tapping a chief minister on the shoulder and giving him his petition, like needing money for a child admitted in a hospital.'
Meanwhile, allegations and counter claims continued on polling day as well, with Chandy's son -- Chandy Oommen -- claiming that his father and their family had been hounded for over 20 years.
KPCC president and MP, Sudhakaran said that unofficially discussions have begun on who should be the candidate and officially it would start a couple of days later.
He will meet Governor R L Bhatia on Tuesday morning and will be sworn in later in the day, CLP sources said.
After campaigning in Alleppey for the legendary K R Gowri Amma, Oommen Chandy spoke to Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier about forming the next government in the state, development in Kerala and more.
Senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy was sworn in as the 21st chief minister of Kerala on Wednesday at the Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram. Along with Chandy, six floor leaders of the United Democratic Front coalition were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor R S Gavai at the lawns of the Raj Bhavan.
Governor R L Bhatia administered the oath of office and secrecy to Chandy at Raj Bhavan in Thiruvanthapuram.
A skillful organiser and shrewd strategist with the man-next-door image, 67-year-old Oommen Chandy has been a key player in the Congress in Kerala for over four decades.
The 79-year old leader, who served as the chief minister of Kerala twice, breathed his last in a private hospital in Bengaluru at 4.25 am. His end came while undergoing treatment for cancer, party sources said.
'Oommen Chandy may well prove to be the Teflon chief minister whose reputation cannot be tarnished,' predicts Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said the assemble elections results were "a setback".
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday submitted his resignation following the defeat of the ruling Congress-led UDF in the assembly election and attributed "false propaganda" against his government among the reasons that led to the debacle.
The CBI also submitted another referral report in the court exonerating Bharatiya Janata Party leader AP Abdullakutty in the sexual exploitation complaint by the woman.
'The fiscal situation is extremely vulnerable. It has never been so bad in Kerala's history.'
Antony, along with his wife Elizabeth, reached Chandy's residence in Thiruvananthapuram to bid adieu to his trusted lieutenant during trying times of their decades-long political career.
If a 15 seconds-long mic problem merits a case being registered, then the police risk an avalanche of complaints of similar and greater gravity, seeking their intervention, notes Shyam G Menon.
With the row over the Mullaperiyar dam escalating, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who directed him to meet Water Resources Minister Pawan Bansal for further discussions on the issue.
'We can't afford to fight each other.' 'We have to win the 2026 election.'
'VS was a man who devoted every moment of his life, from the beginning till his death at the age of 100, to the struggle against the injustices inflicted upon land, nature and the common man.'
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy's son has sent a legal notice to Bharatiya Janata Party state general secretary K Surendran for making certain "defamatory" statements against him in connection with the solar scam.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Wednesday said he would not appeal against the Vigilance Court order of a probe into his alleged role in the Palmolein oil import case. "I will not do anything that will hamper the investigation process," Chandy told reporters after a Cabinet meeting. He also rejected the Opposition's allegation that the vigilance probe would not be impartial as long as he (Chandy) continued to be the chief minister.
The resignation of Forest Minister K B Ganesh Kumar following allegations of domestic violence had its echo in the Kerala Assembly on Tuesday where opposition Left Democratic Front demanded that Chief Minister Oommen Chandy should step down on moral grounds.
Maintaining that a Supreme Court appointed panel on Mullaperiyar Dam had accepted Kerala's demand for a new reservoir, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday said the state, which is locked in a row with Tamil Nadu on the issue, would bring it to the court's notice.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday told DMK supremo M Karunanidhi that Tamilians living in Kerala are "totally safe" and that the apprehensions voiced by him in this regard in the wake of tension between the two states over the Mullaperiyar dam issue were "unfounded".
Terming Italy's decision not to send back its two marines as a "diplomatic tragedy," Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Wednesday said it is the responsibility of the Centre to bring them back to India.
With the standoff between Kerala and Tamil Nadu on the Mullaperiyar dam issue escalating, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.
'You know the situation in Yemen now. There is no government there.' 'The rebels are in control. So, there is no diplomatic channel through which we can negotiate.'
The Kerala high court on Tuesday stayed a lower court order directing investigation into the role of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in the 1992 palmolein import case. Chandy was the finance minister in the K Karunakaran cabinet when the deal was inked.
The Centre has agreed to consider the Kerala government's request for establishing an Indian Institute of Technology centre in the state, Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy told the assembly on Monday.
Oomen Chandy poll rival remanded to custody
Senior leader K Karunakaran and his son Muraleedharan boycotted the swearing in ceremony.
The editorial, titled "Ahimsa Award for the Executioner?", criticized Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for praising the entrepreneurial growth of Kerala under the Left government. It argued that it was "suicidal" to weaken the party from within when the Congress was actively opposing the shortcomings of the LDF government. The editorial also criticized Tharoor's positive remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent US visit, calling it a mere gesture by two administrators to improve their image.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Sunday said the United Democratic Front government's top priority is implementing the SmartCity IT project in Kochi after sorting out issues in the agreement the previous government had with promoters, Dubai based Tecom "which are against the state's interests."
Senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy is set to become the Kerala chief minister with Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president Ramesh Chennithala on Sunday opting out of the race for the top post. A meeting of the senior party leaders held at the KPCC headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram unanimously decided Chandy should lead the United Democratic Front ministry. The Congress Legislature Party meeting scheduled in Thiruvananthapuram later on Sunday will formalise the decision
Stating that the temple is a pride of Kerala, Oommen Chandy said, "It is the duty of the state and society to preserve the wealth." However, it was for the apex court to take a final decision on the matter, he added
Seeking the mandate for the 10th time after nine wins in a row is something rare in the slippery terrain of Kerala politics. But not so in the case of Congress's chief ministerial probable Oommen Chandy, who is back in the fray in his pocket borough Puthupally.
The political rhetoric of Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan was not going to help the ruling Left Democratic Front in its 'losing battle' for the assembly polls as people of Kerala were keen on a change of rule, senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy said on Monday.
The execution of Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse on death row in Yemen, has been postponed by Yemeni authorities, sources said on Tuesday.
erala and Tamil Nadu will be going to polls on May 16 and ahead of the assembly elections, Rediff Labs analyses who's been making the most buzz
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