THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor will not attend the meeting convened by the high command on Friday to discuss poll preparations and UDF prospects in assembly elections. The meeting called by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi will be attended by all veterans including the KPCC president and Leader of Opposition.
Tharoor’s decision came in the wake of allegations that he was ill- treated by the state leadership and Rahul at the recently organised ‘Mahapanchayat’ in Ernakulam.
Though Congress leaders from the state unit and the high command attempted to reach out, Tharoor reportedly did not respond. He will instead attend the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode on Saturday.
Leaders associated with Tharoor opine that the recent developments were unnecessary as Tharoor had conveyed to the leadership that he had no desire to contest assembly elections and was working closely with the party.
“The ball is now with the high command,” said a senior leader. “Tharoor has a strong vote base among youths, tech professionals and the middle class in Thiruvananthapuram, which BJP is also eyeing. Considering the fact that UDF has only one MLA out of 14 in the district, this will be a challenge for Congress,” he said.