Thiruvananthapuram MP and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday missed yet another crucial party meeting, fueling speculation about his strained relationship with the Congress as the Winter Session of Parliament commenced. The Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, chaired by Sonia Gandhi on Sunday, was convened to finalise the party’s strategy for the session, which is expected to be dominated by debates on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls and national security in the wake of the recent Delhi blast.
“I didn’t skip it. I was on a plane coming from Kerala. That’s all,” Tharoor told reporters outside Parliament when asked about his absence. His office clarified that he was travelling with his 90-year-old mother at the time, while Congress general secretary KC Venugopal also missed the meeting, citing local body election commitments.
Tharoor’s repeated absences are seen as part of a pattern that has strained his ties with the party, particularly since Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. Earlier, he had skipped a meeting called to discuss the SIR issue, citing ill health, yet attended an event where Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a lecture and subsequently praised the PM on social media.
The senior leader’s public endorsements of figures like Modi and BJP veteran LK Advani, coupled with his critical remarks on the Nehru-Gandhi family in an article recently , have further accentuated the rift. While he acknowledged dynastic politics in his critique, he refrained from drawing parallels with BJP leaders’ families, a move that drew both praise and criticism from within and outside the party.
Congress leaders have openly questioned Tharoor’s allegiance. Spokesperson Supriya Srinate called his praise of the Prime Minister’s lecture “petty,” while former MP Sandeep Dikshit questioned his commitment, asking, “If you believe someone is doing good for the country by going against Congress policies, why are you in Congress? If you are not explaining this, then you are being hypocritical.”
Tharoor, a former member of the Congress rebel group G-23 and a former candidate for Congress president, has long voiced reformist ideas. However, his statements in recent months, particularly his support for government actions following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, have clashed with the party line, aggravating tensions with senior leadership, including Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge.
The timing of Tharoor’s absences is politically significant as Kerala gears up for Assembly polls early next year. Observers suggest that any decision by Tharoor to quit the Congress could have repercussions for the party in its home state.
Meanwhile, the Winter Session of Parliament began amid heightened political drama, with the Congress-led Opposition pushing for debates on SIR and national security, underscoring the challenges the party faces in presenting a united front.
Despite speculation, Tharoor has downplayed any discord, insisting that he had informed the high command about his inability to attend the meeting. Yet, his repeated absences and independent positions on key issues continue to make him a controversial figure within the party, raising questions about his future role as both a senior leader and a parliamentarian.