V. Sudheer Kumar, former president of the United Democratic Front (UDF)-controlled society, was arrested from Chennamangaloor in Kozhikode district.
The Crime Branch on Saturday (July 4) arrested a former Congress leader here in connection with the alleged misappropriation of funds at the Vadakara-based Kadathanad Labour Contract Cooperative Society and the self-immolation of a 71-year-old investor outside the former’s house on May 29.According to sources, T.V. Sudheer Kumar, former president of the United Democratic Front (UDF)-controlled society, was arrested from Chennamangaloor in Kozhikode district. He had reportedly gone into hiding after switching off his mobile phone following the self-immolation of Ibrahim Haji, a resident of Thiruvallur. Two more functionaries of the society’s board are suspects in the case.It was reported that Haji had invested ₹22 lakh in the society between July 2021 and June 2023, but his requests to withdraw the money were not accepted. He reached Mr. Sudheer Kumar’s house on May 29, doused himself with petrol, and set himself on fire. Though Haji was rushed to the hospital, he could not be saved. The Congress removed Mr. Sudheer Kumar, who was a functionary of the District Congress Committee (DCC), from all party posts after Haji’s death.Many more complaints related to alleged financial misappropriation in society came into the open thereafter. The Cooperation department subsequently found that funds to the tune of over ₹2 crore had been misappropriated. Following this, the case was handed over to the Crime Branch. The police had earlier registered two cases, one on Haji’s complaint over the society’s refusal to withdraw funds and another related to his unnatural death.The incident had also led to a political spat between the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)]. Party State secretary M.V. Govindan visited Haji’s house after his death and termed the incident “a murder” and the “manifestation of an institutional fraud” operated with Congress support. However, K. Praveenkumar, DCC president, said the society was not directly under the party. At present, the society is controlled by an administrative panel involving local UDF leaders. Published - July 04, 2026 06:54 pm IST
Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, left, addresses the gathering during a protest organised by the Madhya Pradesh Mahila Congress on July 3, 2026. | Yadav’s family members in his hometown of Ujjain. In the first half of June, the party had to take a bitter pill after the nomination of its Rajya Sabha candidate Meenakshi Natarajan was rejected for failing to mention a court notice issued to her in Hyderabad. Apart from accusing the BJP of “stealing the seat”, rumours that it could have been a result of the Congress’ infighting also made rounds. The end of June brought another situation that the party is currently busy dealing with after senior leader and former Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh fact-checked an allegation by State Congress president Jitu Patwari had made against Mr. Yadav. This fuelled a series of meetings and press conferences apart from some leaders publicly targeting Mr. Singh while the BJP jumped to take advantage of the situation. Following an investigation by an English Daily that exposed the alleged land scam in Ujjain, Mr. Patwari on June 24 further alleged that government land worth ₹500 crore in Ujjain had been given to a trust called Veer Bharat Nyas for a token amount of ₹1 and that Mr. Yadav’s cultural advisor Shriram Tiwari was a trustee. Mr. Patwari made the allegations during a press conference with party’s national media head at the Congress headquarters in New Delhi However, days later, Mr. Singh addressed reporters in Ujjain and refuted Mr. Patwari’s claim. “An allegation was made recently that land was given to a trust in ₹1 It [the land] has not been given to a private trust. It’s a government trust. I have gotten [documents] on that. I don’t come without putting in research. The ex-officio chairman of the trust is the Chief Minister. So, this charge is not right,” Mr. Singh said, while adding there were several “dalaal (brokers)” who make false allegations and extort money. The statement alarmed various senior M.P. Congress leaders and MLAs as it hampered the party’s efforts to take on a formidable BJP in the State. While a bunch of Congress leaders slammed Mr. Singh on social media, the party rushed to call a meeting of its political affairs committee (PAC), where several leaders are learnt to have raised the issue. Some leaders, however, claim that a sitting of the PAC was already scheduled. As per two Congress insiders and a local report, terms like “sleeper cell” were used in the meeting by some leaders while others urged the leaders to have coordination in their statements. Bhopal MLA Arif Masood, however, denied later that he used terms like “sleeper cell” After the meeting, former Union Minister Arun Yadav took to X and sought Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s intervention while alleging that “certain individuals are making futile attempts to break the morale of those [Congress] workers under a contrived conspiracy”.“If responsible people try to exploit their personal grievances and animosity at the expense of the party’s workers, it will not be right,” he wrote.After the PAC meeting, Mr. Singh and Mr. Patwari also addressed a press conference together in an attempt to presented a united house. “A misconception is being spread that there is an issue between Digvijaya Singh and Jitu Patwari. He is like my son and I have been with the Congress for more than 50 years. I cannot use the word ‘dalaal’ for any Congress worker let alone the State Congress Committee president,” Mr. Singh said with Mr. Patwari sitting next to him. Mr. Singh claimed that the word ‘dalaal’ was used for a local journalist who’s surname Dalal. Various BJP leaders took on the Congress saying that their own leader had exposed the “fake alleg
Applicants queue at the Masonic temple in Vizianagaram on Friday to submit applications for Jana Sena Party posts, despite heavy rain. | Given the response from all sections of society, the party decided to take applications till Sunday, though the earlier deadline was Friday (July 3, 2026).Srikakulam Urban Development Authority Chairman and State Joining Committee member Korikana Ravikumar, party senior leader Gurana Ayyalu and others took applications from young people on Friday at the Masonic temple, which was packed with applicants from different parts of Vizianagaram district, despite heavy rain.Speaking to the media here, Mr. Ravikumar said the party’s new-age politics had drawn young people with the highest qualifications. According to him, doctors, advocates, PhD holders, postgraduates, software engineers and others submitted applications for various posts.Mr. Ravikumar said the village-level and mandal-level committees would have 24 posts each, and more posts were likely in the parliamentary segment and the Assembly constituencies.“JSP President and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan is very particular about the clean background of each and every candidate. They must have a clear idea about the ideology of the party. Public service motto, allocation of time for party works and other aspects will be considered by the party before providing the opportunity to play key role in committees,” Mr. Ravikumar said.Mr. Ayyalu said the party had received around 1,200 applications in the last five days, and hoped it would cross 1,500 by July 5, 2026. He said the party high command would take a final decision on the allocation of posts after a thorough check of the applications and the antecedents of each applicant. Published - July 03, 2026 01:21 pm IST
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