As the battleline has been drawn for the LS polls in the state, the BJP is jubilant that it could wean away some prominent faces from the UDF and field them as candidates. The highlight of BJP's LS candidate list in Kerala is the inclusion of four former Congress leaders Anil Antony, C Raghunath, former VC of Calicut University, M Abdul Salam, and former Pathanamthitta DCC general secretary Baiju Kalasala.
Of these, Anil Antony, son of Congress patriarch A K Antony, was the big catch for the BJP. Before leaving Congress, Anil was a national coordinator of the party's social media wing.
In the 2019 general elections he was the digital media coordinator of Congress in Kerala. In the 2021 state assembly elec- tion also he was in charge of the social media wing. BJP has fielded Anil Antony in Pathanamthitta, one of its 'A' class constituencies.
C Raghunath, former Kannur DCC general secretary, was associated with the Congress for five decades. He was chosen by Congress to take on Pinarayi Vijayan in the 2021 assembly election in Dharmadom. Raghunath is the BJP candidate in Kannur this time.
Dr M Abdul Salam was the VC of Calicut University from 2011 to 2015. Though he was appointed as VC as a nominee of the Muslim League, Dr Salam was closely associated with Congress' teachers organisation at the College of Agriculture, Vellayani. Abdul Salam has been fielded by BJP in Malappuram constituency.
Baiju Kalasala was the Congress candidate in the 2021 assembly election from Mavelikkara. Although he could not win, he garnered 43,013 votes. Baiju will be contesting as the BDJS candidate in Mavelikkara LS constituency.
BJP state president K Surendran told TNIE that there was no surprise in the party fielding former Congress leaders. "We have been allotting 25-35% of seats to new entrants," he said. Surendran said that many Congress leaders from Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta and Thrissur would soon join the BJP.
However, Congress leaders chose to downplay the issue. Terming Abdul Salam as a Muslim League nominee, KPCC president-in-charge M M Hassan told TNIE that C Raghunath was not a prominent leader: "Raghunath harbours strong anti-CPM sentiments. That might be the reason he joined BJP," he said.
On Anil Antony and Padmaja Venugopal, Hassan said lust for power led them to ditch Congress. Anil asked his father A K Antony to recommend his name to Rahul Gandhi for a post at the national level.
However, Antony reportedy told him to achieve it through merit. Anil's name was also considered for the post of KPCC secretary in Kerala. However, Antony told the then state president K Sudhakaran that it was unwarranted.
Hassan said that the Congress would not face any problems even if more party leaders left the party. "Leaders who have conviction in Congress ideology will stand with the party," he said.
The CPM, which was critical of the Congress on the exodus, is watching the developments closely.
CPM state secretariat member M Swaraj told TNIE that he has reliable information that more leaders would leave Congress.
"Two senior Congress leaders had held discussions with the BJP leadership. They had also decided to continue the discussion. I think Padmaja was also speaking about this when she said that more Congress leaders would join the BJP soon," he said.
Surendran's claim leaves Cong camp guessing
T'Puram: BJP state president K Surendran's claim that a few senior Congress leaders will be joining the saffron camp when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be coming down for election campaigning in Palakkad and Pathanamthitta later this week has left the Congress camp in the capital city guessing.
Speculation is rife that the state BJP leadership had approached former health minister VS Sivakumar, former Kollam MP N Peethambara Kurup, and former KPCC general secretary T Saratchandra Prasad to join its camp. But the three leaders vehemently denied the claims and termed it as "scandalous" and "rubbish".
