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Hailing veteran Congress leader A.K. Antony as a man of principles, Union Minister Rajnath Singh said here on Thursday that he lost some respect for him when Mr. Antony suggested that his son Anil K. Antony should lose the election.
“He may face pressure from his party to refrain from seeking votes for his son and I understand his predicament. However, his primary support should be for his son, who is excelling in the Bharatiya Janata Party,” said Mr. Singh during an election convention at Kanjirappally on Thursday.
‘Seek blessings’
Terming Mr. Antony his elder brother and Mr. Anil Antony his nephew, Mr. Singh also asked Mr. Anil Antony to seek the blessings of his father on polling day. “I would suggest that you touch your father’s feet before casting your vote,” he added.
While all Congress ministers in the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government were involved in scams, Mr. Antony stood as an exception. “A.K. Antony was the only man not to face any corruption charge, and I appreciate him for that clean record,” he said.
The statement of Mr. Singh assumes significance, especially in the wake of Mr. Antony’s endorsement of the United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate in Pathanamthitta, which drew a sharp retort from his son, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate there.
Rahul criticised
Meanwhile, Mr. Singh also took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for ‘migrating from Uttar Pradesh to Kerala for fear of failure’ and said Mr. Gandhi would lose from Wayanad this time. “Over the past 10 years, the country has witnessed the launch of several new projects. It has been 20 years since the launch of ‘Rahulyaan’ but it is yet to land anywhere,” he said.
Accusing the Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] of pretending to be fighting each other in Kerala and joining hands in New Delhi, he said no one could stop the BJP from winning two-digit seats in the coming election. He also accused the Opposition parties of attempting to confuse people over the Citizenship Amendment Act.
