Anil Antony, son of veteran Congress leader and former defense minister AK Antony, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of Union minister Piyush Goyal in Delhi on Thursday.
Anil quit the Congress party in January this year following his critical remarks against the Congress party over BBC raids amid the row over BBC’s documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Every Congress worker believes they are working for a family. But I believe I am working for the Congress. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a very clear vision of putting India in a leading place in a multi-polar world,” Anil Antony told the media persons after his joining on Thursday.
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“Anil Antony is a multi-faceted personality. I was very impressed when I saw the credentials of Anil Antony. His views reflect similar with those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on sustainable development. We have confidence he will continue to play a very active role and help grow the BJP’s footprint in southern India,” Union minister Piyush Goyal said.
A techie by profession, Anil Antony served as the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Digital Media and National Co-ordinator convenor of the All Indian Congress Committee (AICC) Social Media and Digital Communications Cell from 2019 to 2023.
Notably, on 25th January, Antony resigned from the Congress following a difference of opinion with the party on the BBC documentary about the Gujarat communal riots of 2002. He had in a Tweet challenged the Congress stance that the documentary exposed PM Modi’s role in the incident. Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat in 2002.
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“Despite large differences with the BJP, I think those (in India) placing views of BBC, a state sponsored channel with a long history of (India) prejudices, and of Jack Straw (former UK foreign secretary), the brain behind the Iraq war, over (Indian) institutions is setting a dangerous precedence, will undermine our sovereignty,” he had said.
Even in the wake of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Parliament, Anil had said that the Congress was focusing on the ‘bloopers of one individual’ instead of real issues affecting the country.
Anil had worked closely with Congress member of Parliament from Kerala, Shashi Tharoor. Union Minister of State from Kerala V Muraleedharan and BJP Kerala president K Surendran were also present during the induction of Anil at the BJP HQs today.