THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Oommen Chandy was the Congress high command’s choice to succeed K Karunakaran as Kerala chief minister in 1995, but he declined the offer and proposed A K Antony’s name instead, senior leader Cherian Philip said on Wednesday.
“Oommen Chandy had told then prime minister P V Narasimha Rao that he was firm on his stand not to occupy the top post. He suggested Antony’s name, and entrusted senior leader P J Kurian and me to convince Antony,” Cherian said in a Facebook post on the eve of Chandy’s first death anniversary.
From the very outset, Antony was also against accepting the offer. However, Kurian met Rao and urged him to persuade Antony to head the government in Kerala, Cherian, an aide-turned-foe-turned-friend of both Antony and Chandy. said.
In 1978, Chandy was a minister when Antony resigned from the office of the CM. Though he was asked to continue in the next government, Chandy declined. Then 1n 1980, when the Congress faction led by Antony was with the CPM-led LDF, he was again asked to join the E K Nayanar government, but Chandy didn’t relent, paving the way for P C Chacko to become a minister, Cherian said.
Chandy, who was the home minister in the 1982 K Karunakaran government, stepped down from the post giving way for Vayalar Ravi to hold the key portfolio. Though Antony tried to persuade Chandy to join his cabinet in 1995 and 2001, he didn’t succeed, Cherian recalled. It was Antony who recommended to Sonia Gandhi Chandy’s name as his successor when he resigned in 2004, Cherian added.