It called for a tougher reaction from the UDF which would be reassuring to the minorities
A.K. Antony
Kochi: Senior Congress leader A K Antony on Tuesday set the record straight on the plans his party and the United Democratic Front (UDF) have for the Assembly elections by directing a no-holds-barred attack on the Sangh Parivar and saying the Assembly elections will be fought between the UDF and the Left Democratic Front (LDF).
Mr Antony with an impeccable secular image minced no words on what he called attempts by the Sangh Parivar to thrust a fascist agenda on Kerala society, even comparing the tactics of the National Democratic Alliance government with that of the Nazi government of Adolf Hitler.
“This straight talk was what we had been waiting for,” said a senior Congress leader, referring to Mr Antony’s outburst.
“The Congress needs to make its secular credentials visible instead of going soft on attempts to communalise society. And Mr Antony is the most suited leader to do the job.”
Mr Antony’s frontal attack on the RSS and the Sangh Parivar marks a stark difference from the stand Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has consistently taken.
The chief minister, who termed the fight in Aruvikkara byelection in June this year was between the UDF and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), did not choose to name his formation’s chief opponent in the Assembly elections either.
While the incidents of intolerance in the last two weeks across the country upset even the game plan of SNDP-BJP combine in the state, it provided the UDF a grave situation in which the LDF could impress minority communities with the claim that it has been consistent in its opposition to the Sangh Parivar.
It called for a tougher reaction from the UDF which would be reassuring to the minorities.
By castigating what he called the divisive strategy of the BJP and giving the party no role in the election to the State Assembly, Mr Antony has done precisely this.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
Next Story
