NEW DELHI: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who is at the centre of a row over his opinion piece in The New Indian Express, will not raise any grievances at the Friday meeting called by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi with senior leaders from Kerala.
According to sources, the four-time Thiruvananthapuram MP has decided to lie low till the local body elections in Kerala, in which the Congress sees as an opportunity to make a comeback.
While senior leaders maintain that the focus of the Friday meeting would be on the party’s preparations ahead of local body elections, sources close to Tharoor hinted he will not make any remarks if the issue comes up. He has decided to bury the hatchet for the time being and actively engage in party affairs till the local body elections, said a close aide.
On Tuesday, Tharoor loyalist and Lok Sabha MP K Raghavan met Congress’ Kerala in charge Deepa Dasmunshi in Delhi and apprised her of the political situation after Tharoor’s article widened the rift among party leaders. Raghavan is believed to have told Dasmunshi that the state leaders have to tone down their attack on Tharoor.
The Congress MP’s public criticism of a leadership vacuum in the state unit and his projection as the Congress’ face ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls left the party irked.
Tharoor had said he had other ‘options’ if the party did not need his services. His comments have ruffled feathers in the Congress camp, which is already riddled with factionalism. During the meeting, Dasmunshi stressed the need for unity in the state leadership.
Raghavan also met and spoke with Tharoor at his residence before meeting Dasmunshi, sources said.
Congress Working Committee members from the state Shashi Tharoor, Kodikunnil Suresh, Ramesh Chennithala, and Kerala Congress president K Sudhakaran, Leader of Opposition leader V D Satheesan are among the leaders who will attend the meeting.
This will be Tharoor’s second meeting with the central leadership after his article sparked controversy. Last week, Rahul Gandhi called on Tharoor for a one-on-one meeting, though the latter did not divulge what transpired in the meeting.
Speaking to media on Wednesday, Tharoor dismissed reports of a rift between him and the party. Referring to the podcast, he said, “You all heard the podcast, what was the controversy about... It is a podcast, a 45-minute conversation about life and pursuits of happiness, nothing about any political controversy.”
Tharoor’s comments sparks speculations
Tharoor had said he had other ‘options’ if the party did not need his services. His comments ruffled feathers in the Congress camp, which is already riddled with factionalism. When asked if he would join BJP, the Congress MP had said, “No, every party has their own belief and history. It is not right to join another party if you can’t embrace their beliefs. I don’t think that is right.”