A.K. Antony
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A.K. Antony
Arackaparambil Kurian Antony (born 28 December 1940) is presently Defence Minister of India, the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the All India Congress Committee, and is the former Chief Minister of Kerala. Antony was born in Cherthala, Kerala, and was educated at Maharajas College and Government Law College, Cochin, Kerala.
Political Career
Chief Minister of Kerala
Antony has been Chief Minister of Kerala thrice in the past. His first term was 1977-1978, second 1995-96, and the third from 2001 to 2004. Antony was the leader of the Congress(A), which later was amalgamated into the Congress. Indira Gandhi appointed him general secretary of the party. Antony also has experience on the national scenario, having been an elected Member of Parliament and Minister for Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution during the tenure of Prime Minister Narasimha Rao.
Rajya Sabha and Defence Ministry
Antony resigned as Chief Minister in 2004 amidst infighting and factional politics, and in 2005 was nominated to the Rajya Sabha. After Natwar Singh's expulsion and Pranab Mukherjee's appointment as External Affairs Minister, Antony was appointed Defence Minister. He was also made a member of the Congress core committee, and was appointed as party in-charge for the state of Maharashtra. After the Congress formed the government again in 2009, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appointed Antony Defence Minister once again. He was also appointed Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the All India Congress Committee.
As Defence Minister, Antony has actively advocated phasing out MiG-21's, and rebuilding the Indian Air Force's fleet with better, modern aircraft. Amidst controversy about the Armed Forces' civilian related violence in Jammu and Kashmir, Antony met with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and ensured that Standard Operating Procedures were implemented in the region. He has emphasized the need for increased ship building expenditure, and recently commissioned INS Shivalik, India's first indigenous stealth warship. Speaking at the ceremony, Antony said ""With the atmosphere in our neighbourhood, we have to maintain high level of operational readiness. Only a professional Navy can meet such challenges."
Antony has taken a strong stand on the issue of Pakistan being a hotbed of terrorism. He has repeatedly stated that Pakistan must follow up on it's claims of dismantling the terror infrastructure. Antony signed a $2.2 billion deal to buy C-17 planes from the United States. Antony also signed a massive US $ 1.4 billion deal with the Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI) for the supply and joint development of medium-range surface-to-air missiles (MRSAM).
In 2004, the then Defence Minister Natwar Singh agreed to purchase the warship Admiral Gorshkov from Russia for $947 million. The price escalated, and the row was finally resolved in 2009 by Antony, where India agreed to pay $2.3 billion for the warship, rechristened INS Vikramaditya. Antony also held discussions with Russian Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov about terror camps lining the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Personal Life
A. K. Antony is one the very few political personalities who leads a simple life and is well known for his clean politics. He is married to Elizabeth Antony, they have two sons named Anil Kurien Antony and Ajith Paul Antony. Though a Syrian Catholic by birth, Antony is a vocal atheist.
Positions Held
1. Member, Kerala Legislative Assembly: 1970 - 1977, 1977 - 1979, 1995 - 1996,1996 - 2001, 2001 - 2005, 2. Chief Minister, Kerala :2001 - 2005, 1995-1996, 1977 - 1978 (Youngest CM of Kerala) 3. Member, Rajya Sabha April 1985 - 1991, April 1991 - 1995, May 2005 - till date 4. 1993 - 1995 Union Cabinet Minister of Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution 5. 1996 - 2001 Leader of Opposition, Kerala Legislative Assembly 6. May 2005 Elected to Rajya Sabha 7. Union Cabinet Minister for Defence 2005-till date
