Difference in viewpoints: Anil Antony on what drove him to join BJP

Anil joining the BJP will come as a boost to the saffron party in Kerala, where it has failed to gain a firm foothold

Soon after joining the BJP, Anil Antony, the son of Kerala Congress veteran A K Antony, explained that a difference in "ideas" and "viewpoints" drove him to join the saffron party.

"It is not personal in any manner. This is a difference of ideas, viewpoints of where the country's trajectory is. I have made it very clear that I represent young India," Anil was quoted as saying by the NDTV on Thursday.

Anil went on to launch a scathing attack on the Congress, saying that the grand old party "is not the future of this country."

"I can assure you that this is not the Congress party that I have seen when I was growing up. This is not the same party that existed 20 years back, not even five years back. This party is which has been reduced to promoting the interests of two or three individuals," Anil told the publication, adding, "It is not just my opinion, it is the opinion of the vast majority of India."

"My father is a person I have the deepest love and respect for," the new BJP member further said.

Anil's comments come on the back of the senior Antony, a Gandhi family loyalist, expressing regret in public over his decision to join the BJP.

"Anil's decision to join the BJP is painful. It is a wrong decision. BJP has been trying to sabotage the country's unity in diversity. Since independence, the Nehru family has been working for the country's unity. I am now 82 and in the final phases of my life. I will remain as a Congress worker till my last breath and continue to raise my voice against the BJP and RSS," Antony had said on Thursday.

Earlier, Anil had said that his decision to join the BJP had been driven by disagreements with the Congress on the issue of the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, he denied that his criticism of the Congress was opportunistic: "This is not the first incident. There have been incidents which have been going on for a while where we were willing to compromise the core interest of the country for small-time political gains. I raised the opinion two or three months ago, without any intention (of joining the BJP)… it was an opinion I gave in a very mild manner but things spiralled and finally I resigned," Anil was quoted as saying by the NDTV.

Regardless of Anil's intentions, his decision to join the BJP will come as a massive boost for the saffron party, which has thus far failed to gain a firm foothold in Kerala. In addition to Anil's influence in the state, the BJP will also be hopeful that his change of camp will help influence the state's Christian community.