RSP to demand Kollam seat from Congress

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With hardly six months left for the crucial assembly election, Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) is all set to stake claim for one of its lost bastions, the Kollam assembly constituency from Congress. The party leadership has decided to put forward the demand when the seat-sharing discussions start officially in the UDF. Meanwhile, RSP leadership has already revealed to Congress leaders about its intentions. Kollam assembly constituency has always been an RSP stronghold, RSP state secretary Shibu Baby John told TNIE . We have a good organisation and strong units in the constituency. Kollam was one of the constituencies we had contested continuously. And we will present our demand in the UDF, he said. UDF leaders said the Congress leadership is yet to respond to the feelers sent by its front partner. For the past two consecutive assembly elections, RSPs representation in the assembly is zero. After the exit of the remaining RSP faction from LDF and its unification with the faction in the UDF, the party had been contesting from five constituencies- Chavara, Kunnathur, Eravipuram, Mattannur and Attingal. Of these, Kunnathur and Attingal are Scheduled Caste reservation constituencies. Now, as RSP is no longer a political force to reckon with after many internal rifts and splits, the leadership is of the view that Kollam seat should be handed over to them as the party has a claim on it. We have been awarded two reservation seats. That is unacceptable. In Attingal we are weak. In Mattannur also our presence is very minimal. We want Kollam where the party is strong and vibrant even now, an RSP state committee leader said. The Kollam seat was with the RSP till the 1996 assembly election, while it was part of LDF. In the 2001 assembly election, after the split in RSP, the seat was won by RSP(B) which was with the UDF. In 2006, RSP (M) contested in the seat for the UDF but lost to CPM. In 2011, Congress took over the seat from the RSP. The RSP faction which was with the LDF also faced a setback as the CPM took over the Kollam parliament seat in 1999. In 2014 the RSP quit LDF after CPM denied the seat to it.