As the suspense over the selection of Kerala’s next Chief Minister continued, with the Congress leadership still unable to arrive at a final decision even ten days after the Assembly election results were declared, posters targeting Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra surfaced in Wayanad and Kozhikode districts, exposing growing tensions within sections of the party rank and file. This comes amid the ongoing power struggle within the United Democratic Front (UDF), as reported in Times of India.
The posters appeared on the name board of Rajiv Bhavan, the District Congress Committee (DCC) office in Kalpetta, as well as near Priyanka Gandhi’s MP office at North Karassery in the Thiruvambady Assembly constituency of Kozhikode district.
Printed in English, the anonymous posters carried sharp warnings directed at the Gandhi siblings. One poster read, “Mr Rahul and Priyanka forget Wayanad. You won’t win again from here.” Another stated, “RG and PG, this is not a warning, Kerala never forgive you for this blunder.” A third poster directly targeted Congress general secretary K. C. Venugopal, saying, “Mr Rahul, KC might be your bag bearer but people of Kerala never forgive you.”
Residents and party workers noticed the posters on Wednesday (13 May 2026) morning. It is believed that unidentified persons pasted them during the night hours on Tuesday (12 May 2026). Similar posters appearing nearly 50 kilometres apart in Kalpetta and Karassery triggered speculation that the same group or individuals were behind both incidents.
#WATCH | Wayanad, Keralam | As suspense over Keralam’s next CM continues after Congress-led UDF’s victory, posters targeting Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and the party high command have appeared near the Wayanad District Congress Committee office pic.twitter.com/SqxcGCsuzl
— ANI (@ANI) May 13, 2026
Following the controversy, the District Congress Committee leadership intervened and removed the posters from both locations. Party leaders reportedly obtained CCTV footage showing the person who pasted the posters and initiated an internal enquiry to determine whether any Congress workers were involved in the incident.
DCC leaders said such actions would not be tolerated and warned that strict disciplinary action would be taken if any party member was found responsible for putting up the posters.
The latest episode comes amid intensifying factional tensions within the Congress over the choice of Chief Minister following the UDF’s decisive victory in the Kerala Assembly elections. Internal differences have reportedly sharpened between supporters of opposition leader V. D. Satheesan and those backing K C Venugopal for the top post.
Last week, protests were staged by local Congress workers at North Karassery against attempts to project Venugopal as Chief Minister instead of Satheesan, who had led the UDF campaign and played a central role in the alliance securing victory in 102 Assembly seats.
Satheesan had earlier staked his political future on the election outcome, publicly declaring that he would quit politics if the UDF failed to cross the 100-seat mark in the Assembly election.
The ongoing flex and poster war within the Congress has also taken a curious political turn after a CPM worker was found allegedly putting up a flex board supporting Venugopal in Thrissur district earlier this week.
At Vadanappally in Thrissur on Monday, a flex board carrying the slogan “Let KC Lead” along with Venugopal’s photograph appeared in public and was attributed to a group calling itself the “Save Congress” faction.
However, CCTV footage later showed that the flex board had allegedly been installed by A Mohammed, a local committee member of the CPI(M). The incident gained widespread attention after the CCTV visuals surfaced publicly, raising further questions over the political messaging and internal power struggle unfolding within the Congress camp even after the UDF’s electoral victory.
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