CROSS AND CURRENTS

The BJP fields Congress leader A.K. Antony's son in the Pathanamthitta LS seat. Can he upset the status quo, help the lotus bloom in central Kerala?

- Jeemon Jacob

Former defence minister and Congress leader A.K. Antony has always maintained a spotless, carefully cultivated image in his seven-decadelong sojourn through democracy's pathways. But at the ripe old age of 84, the man once described as the St. Antony of Indian politics finds himself at a political crossroads. Elder son Anil Antony has defected to the BJP and is making his electoral debut in the Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha seat in south Kerala against one of his father's staunch followers, sitting Congress MP Anto Antony. CPI(M) leader and former state finance minister Dr Thomas Isaac is the third face in the contest. All the buzz in the constituency is whether Antony Sr will campaign in Pathanamthitta or not.

The veteran leader has not been keeping well, but on March 26 he made sure to let the press know where his loyalties lay. He said it is a "do or die battle" for the Congress and the country to save democracy. There is pressure on him to campaign in Pathanamthitta, especially after Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a BJP poll rally on March 19, pitching for Anil.