Tale of two Ambanis: Mukesh Ambani backs Congress' Milind Deora, son Anant attends Narendra Modi's rally

NEW DELHI: Mukesh Ambani’s son Anant Ambani was seated in the front row of PM Narendra Modi’s rally at the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai on Friday, a week after the RIL chairman had endorsed a Congress candidate.

“I have come here to support the country and to listen to the PM,” Ambani’s youngest son told a television channel.

His father had backed Milind Deora, the Congress candidate from Mumbai South. “Milind is the man for south Mumbai. Having represented south Mumbai for 10 years, I believe Milind has in-depth knowledge of social, economic and cultural ecosystem of the south Mumbai constituency,” he had said in a video montage released by Deora’s campaign.


Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray had said in his last rally in Mumbai’s Kalachowkie area that this was a message that the BJP was not coming back to power and that Mukesh Ambani had endorsed Deora in spite of being friends with Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis has been trying to downplay the endorsement. He said Ambani had endorsed Deora in 2014 as well but the candidate had lost. In spite of this, the discomfiture within the BJP was evident, analysts said. The Ambani and Deora families have longstanding ties.

Anant Ambani, who was seated along with BJP leaders like Kirit Somaiya, cheered “Chowkidar” “Chowkidar”, raising his hands, at the end of PM Modi’s speech, joining the rest of the crowd.

PM’S MESSAGE AT RALLY: DON’T WASTE YOUR VOTE
Anant Ambani’s presence at the Modi rally in Mumbai’s BKC is being seen as an attempt to redress the balance, observers said.

In his speech, the prime minister had a message for those who supported the Congress. He said the BJP would retain power and the Congress would get just 50 seats.

“Every survey and every news report shows that we would get 282 seats or more. Surveys are also agreeing that BJP and NDA (National Democratic Alliance) will win the most seats in Parliament and come back to power. This is not the BJP saying, but surveys,” Modi said. “The talk is whether NDA will cross 300, 315 or will it go to 400… After three phases it is clear the BJP government is coming back… People of Mumbai are smart — they know which way the wind is blowing. Be sensible, don’t waste your vote.”

India’s seven-phase election ends on May 19, with votes being counted on May 23.

Alluding to cases against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, without naming them, Modi said, “We have attacked corruption and as a result many are in jail and some on bail. In 2014, you elected me. I took them to the doors of the jail. You elect me in 2019, I will put them behind bars.”

The PM said that the next five years are very important for the country. The future is pregnant with a “lot of possibilities”. Talking about Congress promises, Modi said its leaders have called the “middle class greedy… They want to impose high taxes on the middle classes”.

The PM said his government had not increased taxes in the past five years and had brought more people into the tax bracket. Paying homage to the security personnel who died during the 26/11terror attack, he accused the Congress of insulting martyred policemen. The Congress party had always ignored demands by police personnel who wanted a memorial for their fallen colleagues. “If we don’t respect those who have died for us, then how will the country function?”