THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hard on the heels of his most recent ‘provocations’, Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor is losing the support of UDF partners, many of whom had stood with him in times of crisis. Two major allies, the Muslim League and the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), have come out openly against Tharoor over two separate incidents that placed him at odds with UDF’s political positioning.
Referring to Tharoor attending a luncheon hosted by the Israeli ambassador to India, IUML general secretary P M A Salam said the Congress party has no control over Tharoor.
“Tharoor has been doing things without the knowledge of the Congress leadership. The Muslim League has serious reservations about some of his actions. This has been continuing for some time. It is the Congress that has to take a call on how to deal with it,” Salam told TNIE.
The League had extended its support to Tharoor when several Congress state leaders tried to block his active participation in Kerala politics. In 2023, the League leadership invited Tharoor to its pro-Palestine rally, where his reference to Hamas as a terrorist organisation had put the former in an awkward spot.
Tharoor attended the event hosted by the Israeli envoy for Indian Parliament members on June 27. It was organised to solicit the support of the Indian political class for Israel in its war with Iran and attack on Gaza. Among those invited were BJP leaders Ravi Shankar Prasad and Baijayant Panda and Congress’ Praniti Shinde and Deepender Singh Hooda, besides Tharoor. However, Praniti and Deepender did not attend the function.
Congress leadership chooses silence
Interestingly, Tharoor attended the function just two days after Congress supremo Sonia Gandhi criticised Israel’s aggression on Gaza and Iran. In an article published in a national daily, she criticised the Union government’s silence on the devastation in Gaza and the hostilities against Iran.
It seems to have dawned on the Muslim League leadership that continued support for the Congress MP may prove to be a setback for the party and the UDF, as a result of backlash from the Muslim community.
The RSP is also not pleased with the manner in which Tharoor is “acting against UDF interests”. The party is of the view that Tharoor’s article, published in a Malayalam daily, criticising the Emergency and former prime minister Indira Gandhi is a calculated move.
“It is intriguing that Tharoor, who has been elected on a Congress ticket, is deliberately speaking in the voice of the BJP,” RSP state general secretary Shibu Baby John told TNIE.
“Emergency was declared when an elected government was held to ransom and calls had been issued to the police and armed forces not to listen to the Union government. It was received well in the first half. It was only later that excessive force was used,” he added.
Meanwhile, the national and state Congress leaderships have decided not to respond to Tharoor’s reported incitements. “It is the All-India Congress Committee which has to take a call on Tharoor’s actions,” KPCC president Sunny Joseph said.
However, a Congress national leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the party is closely watching Tharoor’s actions. “Let us see how far he will go. We have already said that we expect Tharoor will recognise his mistakes and repent,” he said.