Cherian Philip ends LDF association to return to Congress fold
The Hindu
Antony dismisses possibility of Mr. Philip becoming his successor for Rajya Sabha seat
Ending his two-decade-long association with the Left Democratic Front (LDF), Cherian Philip returned to the Congress fold on Friday to end speculations of a possible “homecoming” that were triggered by his veiled criticism of the government of late.
Announcing his decision at a press conference a few minutes after he paid his ‘political mentor’ and veteran Congress leader A.K. Antony, MP, a visit at his home here, Mr. Philip said he had to take the plunge to preserve his political identity that he stood to lose while remaining a CPI(M) fellow traveller.
“I have lost my political relevance. The LDF has used me for their political gains, but I had to withdraw from mainstream politics during the last 20 years. I cannot cease to be a political animal.” he said.
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When fed into Latin, pusilla comes out denoting “very small”. The Baillon’s crake can be missed in the field, when it is at a distance, as the magnification of the human eye is woefully short of what it takes to pick up this tiny creature. The other factor is the Baillon’s crake’s predisposition to present less of itself: it moves about furtively and slides into the reeds at the slightest suspicion of being noticed. But if you are keen on observing the Baillon’s crake or the ruddy breasted crake in the field, in Chennai, this would be the best time to put in efforts towards that end. These birds live amidst reeds, the bulrushes, which are likely to lose their density now as they would shrivel and go brown, leaving wide gaps, thereby reducing the cover for these tiddly birds to stay inscrutable.