A day after he opposed the two-part BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Anil K Antony, son of former union minister and Congress veteran leader AK Antony, resigned from all Congress posts on Wednesday.
Antony announced his resignation and shared a letter on Twitter stating, “I have resigned from my roles in Congress. Intolerant calls to retract a tweet by those fighting for free speech. I refused. @facebook wall of hate/abuses by ones supporting a trek to promote love! Hypocrisy thy name is! Life goes on.”
On Tuesday, he opposed the documentary saying that placing the views of the British broadcaster over Indian institutions would “undermine” the country’s sovereignty.
Also Read: Shashi Tharoor says he has not spoken to Anil Antony: ‘Can BBC series affect our sovereignty?’
He has also alleged receiving threatening calls and hate messages “through the night”.
“Considering the events from yesterday, I believe it would be appropriate for me to leave all my roles in the Congress. Kindly consider this as my resignation letter,” he wrote in his resignation letter.
{{/usCountry}}“Considering the events from yesterday, I believe it would be appropriate for me to leave all my roles in the Congress. Kindly consider this as my resignation letter,” he wrote in his resignation letter.
{{/usCountry}}Anil held the position of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) digital media convener and national coordinator of the All India Congress Committee (AICC).
“I would prefer to continue my other professional endeavours without being fed this negativity and being involved in these destructive narratives, many against the very core interests of India. These I strongly believe will end up in the dustbin of history with time,” he further stated.
In his resignation letter, Antony thanked senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his support.
In a Tweet on Tuesday, Anthony hit out at the BBC terming it “a state-sponsored channel with a long history of prejudices” against India.
“Despite large differences with BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party], I think those in India placing views of BBC, a Great Britain state-sponsored channel with a long history of Indian prejudices, and of Jack Straw, the brain behind the Iraq war, over Indian institutions is setting dangerous precedence, will undermine our sovereignty,” he wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.
Despite several attempts, his father AK Antony could not be contacted for comments on the matter.
Also Read: Student unions plan to screen BBC documentary at Presidency University
The two-part BBC documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’ on the 2002 Gujrat riots was criticised by several political leaders, including the ministry of external affairs which termed it a “propaganda piece without objectivity and reflection of a colonial mindset.”
Last week, the union government directed the blocking of multiple YouTube videos and Twitter posts sharing links to the documentary.
Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC) have sharply rebuked the centre’s move as an attempt at “censorship”. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also raised questions over the centre’s actions to prevent the screening and distribution of the film.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) student wing Students Federation of India (SFI) has also sought permission for screening the documentary at Kolkata’s Presidency University on Friday.
The documentary was screened in several parts of Kerala, prompting protest marches by the BJP’s Yuva Morcha against the same.