With barely a year left for the assembly elections in Kerala, the Congress party on Friday effected a change in its state leadership by appointing All India Congress Committee general secretary and Congress Working Committee member Ramesh Chennithala as its chief.

Chennithala's appointment comes on the heels of veteran leader K Karunakaran's exit from the party and the severe drubbing it received in the recent byelections in two assembly segments in the state.

Chennithala has been appointed the president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee to succeed Thennala Balakrishna Pillai, AICC media secretary Tom Vadakkan told PTI in New Delhi.

In an unanimous resolution adopted last week, the KPCC had authorised party president Sonia Gandhi to choose the president and other office bearers.