Antony said that his son, contesting on a BJP ticket, should lose and the Congress candidate and sitting MP Anto Antony should win.
AK Antony speaking to media.
Congress veteran AK Antony said on Tuesday, 9 April, that his son, Anil K Antony, who is contesting as BJP candidate in Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha seat in Kerala, should not win the election.
Addressing a press conference, Antony said that his son’s party should lose, and his rival, the Congress candidate in the south Kerala constituency, Anto Antony, should win.
“He (Anil K Antony) will lose the poll. Anto will emerge victorious. I am not going to Pathanamthitta for the UDF candidate because I have health issues and it’s not possible to travel that far,” said Antony.
He also termed the act of children of Congress leaders joining the BJP as “wrong.”
“The Congress is my religion”, Antony said, reacting to repeated queries about his son’s politics.
Q. Your son is fighting his first election. Don't you want him to win?
A. He must lose. Congress must win. AK Antony is Congress. Congress is my religion!
❤️🤍💚 pic.twitter.com/T2tcowAMbw— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) April 9, 2024
At the same time, Anil told the media he felt sorry for Antony (his father), who is campaigning for a person who had tried to give a clean chit to Pakistan (referring to Anto Antony’s comment on the Pulwama attack)
“He (AK Antony) was the former defence minister of India, and he had supported a person who had tried to give clean chit to Pakistan. Anto Antony will lose the election,” said Anil.
In Pathanamthitta, Anil Antony will take on sitting Congress MP Anto Antony and the CPI(M) central committee member and noted economist and former state finance minister Dr TM Thomas Issac.
Pathanamthitta also houses Sabarimala, the abode of the celibate god Ayyappa, to which the entry of women continues to be a matter of contention between the Sangh Parivar and modernists.
The temple witnessed fights between orthodox and modernists between 2018 and 2019 when the Supreme Court allowed temple entry beyond gender considerations.
On 15 March, Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned in Pathanamthitta seeking votes for Anil.
Lok Sabha elections will be held in Kerala on 26 April and the results will be declared on 4 June.
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