Antony urges party workers to stay united for LS polls

Stating that Congress was facing grim challenges at the national level, Defence Minister A K Antony today asked the party leaders and workers to stay united to face the coming Lok Sabha polls.
"The Indian National Congress is passing through a phase of grim challenges. The 2014 Lok Sabha elections are going to be a decisive battle. This is the time for the entire party rank and file and its allies to stay united and display loyalty to the organisation", he said after laying the foundation stone for the K Karunakaran Research Centre here.
He said the country was passing through a phase where even the lofty national ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru were under attack. It was their vision that reinforced the unity and integrity of the nation and they should not be allowed to be weakened, he said.

Despite its complexities, India had survived because the unity of all sections had been the basis of the nation.
Urging the party workers to work hard for the coming electoral battle, he said "what is awaiting us are severe challenges and things are not going to be easy. Still, the party can score a record victory by staying united."
Showering praises on late Congress veteran K Karunakaran who led the party to victory in many elections in Kerala, Antony said his statesmanship and leadership quality to keep the partners together had helped Congress in the state on many critical occasions.

"He was also a leader who rose in politics from the ranks without the patronage of anybody to become a 'kingmaker" in national politics", Antony said.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala, Karunakaran's son and party MLA K Muraleedharan, daughter and KPCC general secretary Padmaja Venugopal, IUML leader P K Kunhalikutty and KC (M) leader K M Mani were present.