THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress Working Committee member AK Antony said that he does not think that the Congress would be able to gain power alone in the current political climate of the country. He was inaugurating the INTUC Platinum Jubilee celebrations at a special venue at the Uday Samudra Hotel in Kovalam.

"I am a realist. The Congress can find at least 5-10 activists in any village in India. But this alone will not bring the party to power in the country. The party has decided to form a Chintan Shibir to formulate the necessary political strategies to defeat the parties in power in the country today. All political parties, big and small, must move together to bring down the BJP-led anti-people government. It is up to the Congress to take the initiative. Some say the BJP government can be ousted without the help of Congress. What can I say to them. If the people misunderstand the intent of the argument that the Opposition is a united front without the Congress, they cannot be blamed. If your stand is sincere, you should join hands with the Congress," Antony said.

"All the labour laws introduced by the Congress governments have been subverted. The country is ruled by a government that is not ready to negotiate despite 72 hours of strikes. All the prime ministers since Pandit Nehru have accepted the demands of the workers. The pressure from INTUC has been behind all this. Today, the Prime Minister is not ready to discuss any issue with the trade unions. This policy will not change without a change in the central government. The INTUC is the biggest backbone of the Congress," he added.

INTUC national president Dr G Sanjeeva Reddy presided over the function. KPCC President K. Sudhakaran, Ramesh Chennithala, Shashi Tharoor, MK Raghavan, INTUC State President R. Chandrasekharan, M. Raghavaya, R.C. Khuntia, Ashok Singh, Chandra Prakash, Sanjay Singh, SK Yadav, Sanjay Gaba and Alka Kshatriya spoke on the occasion.