Strengthening the anti-Oommen Chandy brigade, senior Congress leaders Mullappally Ramachandran and K Muraleedharan on Sunday joined issue with Chief whip P C George that Defence Minister A K Antony’s intervention is inevitable to solve the issues that continue to dog the party in the state.
Mullappally said in Kozhikode that it is high time that Antony intervened in issues of the state unit.
“A veteran leader of Antony’s stature should not stay away and take an indifferent stand when the problems in the state unit are becoming more and more complex day by day. He should give up his passive attitude, break his silence and intervene in these matters. He should show more interest. He is the top most leader from the state. Antony is adept at dealing with the coalition politics of the state and a leader capable of taking key decisions concerning the Congress and UDF. But now he is not showing much interest or taking care about the Kerala unit,” he said.
However, Mullappally clarified that his words should not be interpreted in such a way that he wants Antony to take over the chief ministership of the state tomorrow.
“Earlier too I had this opinion that Antony is not keen in the state’s affairs and I had personally communicated this to him,” added Mullappally.
Echoing similar sentiments, former KPCC president K Muraleedharan MLA said that Antony’s cooperation and intervention in the party affairs of the state is the need of the hour. “It will help find solutions to various problems within the party,” he said.
However, senior leader and Union Minister Vayalar Ravi turned down the possibility of Antony returning to the state.
“Antony is the Defence Minister and he has been handling that portfolio quite well. As far as I know, he is not interested in returning to the state where he had three stints as Chief Minister,” Ravi told reporters in Kozhikode.
It was Government Chief Whip and Kerala Congress (M) vice-chairman P C George who had triggered the demand that Antony should assume the leadership of the government to tide over the crisis prevailing in the state.
“Once Antony takes over the mantle of the state administration, corruption will be eradicated and the state Congress will be strengthened as well,” he opined.