Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday firmly dismissed speculation about quitting the party, publicly reaffirming his loyalty a day after meeting Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi.
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Responding to questions on whether he was considering leaving the Congress, the Thiruvananthapuram MP made his position clear.
“I am in the Congress and I am not going anywhere. I will be part of the Kerala campaign and work for the UDF’s victory. I will be in the forefront leading the Congress in the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections,” Tharoor told reporters.
Praise for Rahul Gandhi’s Political Stand
During his interaction with the media, Tharoor also praised Rahul Gandhi’s leadership and ideological clarity.
“He is a leader with a clear political stand. He is a leader who opposes communalism,” Tharoor said.
Addressing criticism over his occasional differences with the party’s official position, Tharoor clarified that the Congress line remains paramount.
“I do not express any other opinion on matters where the party has a stand. In some situations, I express my personal opinion. When I see good things in development matters, I point them out,” he said.
‘My Focus Is on National Issues’
Tharoor stressed that his political engagement is centred on national concerns rather than internal party dynamics.
“I do not want to talk politics; I want to speak for the nation. I have been saying that since 2009,” he said, adding that no one had the right to oppose the party’s official stand.
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Questioning why his loyalty was repeatedly scrutinised, Tharoor remarked: “What is the need to tell that I will remain in the Congress? Why is such a question being asked only to me? I will remain firmly with the Congress.”
Meeting With Kharge, Rahul Seen as Reset
Tharoor’s remarks came a day after he met Kharge and Rahul Gandhi at the Parliament House complex in a meeting that lasted over an hour and forty-five minutes.
The interaction was widely seen as an effort to smoothen differences ahead of the crucial Kerala Assembly elections.
“We had a discussion with my two party leaders, the LoP and the Congress president. We had a very good, constructive, positive discussion. All is good and we are moving together on the same page. What more can I say,” Tharoor said after the meeting.
Background to the Discontent
Tharoor was recently believed to be unhappy over his treatment at a party event in Kochi and what he perceived as attempts by sections of the Kerala leadership to marginalise him.
Last week, he skipped a key Congress strategy meeting for the Kerala Assembly polls. Sources said he was upset over Rahul Gandhi not adequately acknowledging him at a recent programme and repeated efforts by state leaders to push him to the sidelines.
A similar controversy had erupted last year after Tharoor’s remarks on India-Pakistan relations and diplomatic outreach following the Pahalgam attack diverged from the Congress line, drawing criticism from within the party.
