Congress replaces Kerala unit chief

Thennala Balakrishna Pillai was on Wednesday appointed the new chief of the Congress unit in Kerala [ Images ] in place of P P Thankachan amid indications of a major cabinet reshuffle soon after the assembly session scheduled to begin on June 25.

Thankachan was a nominee of K Karunakaran. Senior leader A C Jose has been made vice-president in the new setup, which will have three general secretaries.

Congress leader Ahmed Patel, who is also in charge of Kerala, made the announcement in Delhi [ Images ]. The revamp comes in the wake of the party's unprecedented rout in the state in the just concluded Lok Sabha elections.

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Chief Minister A K Antony was recently in Delhi for a series of meetings with party chief Sonia Gandhi [ Images ] and other senior leaders, including Patel.