The diplomat-turned-politician Shashi Tharoor has managed to charm his way into the hearts of Thiruvananthapuram voters, winning the parliamentary constituency thrice in succession for Congress.
He enjoys a support base that goes beyond the means of his party. But his political career seems to be going nowhere.
Amid rumours of parties like AAP and Trinamool Congress wooing him, Tharoor talks to TNIE about his politics, equation with the Gandhis and future plans. Excerpts.
You are one of the few politicians in the state who believe in and practise positive politics. What is your vision for the state?
I do try to be positive. There’s enough negativism around us, so I don’t want to add to it. I have been a huge fan of the Kerala model.
In my book ‘India: From Midnight to the Millennium, I have compared Kerala’s social indicators to that of the US, pointing out how they were parallel to each other. We have a great environment; we have tremendously intelligent, well-educated people. But what is unfortunate is that our success story rests heavily on three main sources of revenue — Gulf remittances, excise from alcohol consumption and tourism.
This can be very vulnerable. Why is it that though the first Technopark in India was set up in Thiruvananthapuram, we have remained a relatively minor player for a long time? What we require is a government that focuses on growth; a growth that is in the interests of the people. That is my vision.
Talking about the development, Vizhinjam port was your dream project and you had played a significant role in making it a reality. But now, the local people, who happen to be your loyal supporters, are on a warpath against the project...
Vizhinjam port work has some genuine problems and some man-made problems. Ours is not an easy state to do conventional development work. Due to the two successive floods and then the Covid period and lockdown, we are a year and a half behind schedule.
It is in this inopportune moment that this particular agitation is happening. Obviously, when the state government itself wants work to proceed fast, it cannot easily agree to such a demand.
What exactly is the problem?
Coastal erosion is a serious problem in Kerala. I have been raising this in Parliament for 10 years. It should be addressed. I said in Parliament if China took two inches of our land, we will all be up in arms, saying this is a national issue.
The sea has taken 64 sq km of my constituency. This too is ‘Bharat Ki Bhoomi’. You cannot blame the coastal community for asking “who cares for us”. But I am not certain about the argument that this is because of the port construction. The port construction is not that far advanced.
Of the 3.1 km of the breakwater that they have to construct, they have barely constructed just over one km. So I can’t believe that alone can cause this kind of damage. Sea erosion is a reality. But that has been attributed rightly or wrongly — I think more likely to be wrong — to the port.
So you mean to say the sea erosion is not because of the port but due to the larger climatic issues?
I think the claim that the damage is due to the port is worth looking at through a panel of experts.
The state government can constitute a small panel of experts who should also go and talk to the community representatives.
But, to actually understand sea erosion issues, there are experts, international as well as national.
Let them come and do a proper study. But that doesn’t mean work should stop.
The ongoing agitation has now taken on an anti-port air, some sort of an anti-development stance. Would you try to convince Church leaders that the agitation should focus more on livelihood problems faced by the affected?
I have already told them. At a time when we are busy suing the company building the port for not going fast enough, how can the same government tell them to stop work? I can’t speak for the state government.
My party is not in power in either Delhi or Kerala. What I have is some influence and some moral authority as the people’s representative.
Beyond that, the only one with authority to act is the CM and the state government. So I have to put the ball in their court. I am not a buck-passer, but the fact remains that I have no executive authority.
What drives Shashi Tharoor the politician? Is it political ambition or ideology? Don’t say it is working for the people…
Working for the people (laughs) … Every week, as an MP, I am able to deliver results to somebody. In a democracy, politics is still the most impactful way to make a difference in the lives of people. For that, in our system, you need to have a vehicle and the vehicle here is your party.
There I have certainly found our share of challenges. I am giving it all very serious thought as to whether this is necessarily the most useful thing I could be doing.
You had been a diplomat before switching to politics. During your first tenure as MP, you were a minister in the UPA-2 cabinet. But, you have been ‘just an MP’ for the past eight years. Do you feel any disappointment?
So, you don’t believe in the dictum ‘never give up’? (chuckles…) Yes, we are in a stage where Congress is not in power either at the Centre or in the state. And, there are great limitations on how much an MP can deliver.
You may have ideas, and you may diagnose the problems and solutions, but I will concede that there are frustrations.
A number of people have been asking me why not turn my attention to the state where Congress is a serious contender for power.
Does that mean that you won’t be contesting in the 2024 Lok Sabha election?
No, no. All I am saying is that I am seriously examining all the options before me. It is the party that will decide whether to allot a seat to me or not.
If my party gives me a ticket to the contest, that could be one option. There are other options too.
What exactly are the options?
I don’t want to go into all that now. Once you go public, then they cease to be in your mind and they become objects of public discussion. I have not been somebody in my entire working life who has ever begged for something.
Equally, I have not been somebody who shied away from an opportunity or challenge to make an impact.
There are rumours that AAP and BJP are keen to rope you in...
Well, they are not the only ones... (laughs loudly) I have the great inconvenience of having ideological convictions. So, parties that don’t share the same ideological premises may probably not be an easy place for me to fit into.
So, can we rule out BJP?
I think that is pretty obvious. If I were in the BJP, I wouldn’t invite Shashi Tharoor to come and join.
What about AAP?
I have respect for many parties. In Delhi, we oppose the AAP. But I would say some of the work they (AAP) do is good.
See, the service delivery aspect; we saw the same thing in 2020 in Kerala. If you can deliver service effectively to the public, that is not a bad thing.
But do you think an “apolitical’’ party like AAP will be able to make an impact in a deeply political state like Kerala?
The success of AAP will depend on how efficiently they are able to address the peculiarities of Kerala politics. Let’s see…
What are the options other than AAP and BJP?
There are regional parties having broadly the same ideology as that of Congress as they might have broken away at some point in time.
It is difficult to say that ideologically there is an incompatibility. There are several parties that share broadly the orientation of Congress when it comes to a mixed economy, foreign policy, political democracy and freedom of the Press.
In that sense, all those parties that subscribe to the same ideology could be compatible. But, right now I still have hope that Congress would turn out to be the right vehicle for advancing the dream of India.
You said you want to be part of state politics. Do you think you will be welcomed by Congress leaders in Kerala if you decide to shift base? There is already a problem of plenty...
Congress is all of us; all of us who work in Congress are in Congress. Current state leadership has an excellent relationship with me.
You were part of the G23. What is the current position? Are you still a part of it?
Frankly, G23 is a media myth. It was a letter drafted by some of our colleagues which some of us were invited to sign. It is not a particularly coherent group.
They were a group of people who met, the composition of which shifted from time to time and as you know one or two of the signatories are no longer in the party and some of them have dissociated with it. I signed it as by and large I agreed with its contents.
One of the things that needed to be said was that the party was too important for the future of India to be allowed to drift and that it needed some serious institutional revival. That I still stand by.
Did you meet Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi after that?
I met Sonia Gandhi several times after that and Rahul Gandhi once or twice. Sonia Gandhi as interim president has not been inaccessible.
She certainly had health issues but she hasn’t been sort of absent at the leadership.
What’s your equation with Rahul Gandhi?
Frankly, relationships with individuals have their ups and downs. I won’t go around claiming any particular relationship with anyone. I don’t badmouth anyone too.
I don’t believe in playing this game of attacking people and when attacked, I will usually smile and move on. I don’t believe in this kind of politics.
The election for Congress president is coming up. Will you be a candidate?
Just wait for the elections to be announced and see what the options are. I am not saying I would necessarily be a candidate. If the “heir apparent” chooses not to be a contestant, then others will come forward and we will have a good set of choices.
Congress failed to return to power in Kerala after serving a term in the opposition. What went wrong?
There were some organisational deficiencies on our part. Also, there were some messaging issues on our part. I do not want to blame the selection of young candidates but I would certainly blame our failure to name these candidates much earlier. If you put up young faces, you should give them three months, not just three weeks, to sell themselves.
Was candidate selection the only issue? What about factionalism?
Factionalism has been most unfortunate. But, I think to some degree it is disappearing. There is a need for internal infusion of new energy to make this work. Mr Sudhakaran was meant to energise the party workers.
And I would say Mr Satheesan is also doing a good job as leader of the opposition.
We have got good things going right now which I think will present a different narrative in 2026.
Earlier there were only two groups. Now there seem to be many more groups, including the one led by K C Venugopal…
You know Kofi Annan used to tell me that there are no stupid questions, there are only stupid answers. Let me not give a stupid answer…
You said in a recent interview that given the opportunity you would grab chief ministership.
Who wouldn’t? Wouldn’t you grab it? I would take it up because there are things to be done.
How do you view the prospects of Narendra Modi in 2024?
There is no doubt that Mr Modi is popular, particularly in northern India and the so-called Hindi belt. His party is also well organised and by far the best-funded party. But, we have some sort of immunity in the South towards their messaging.
Tamil Nadu and Kerala have a different orientation. They are not going to find it easy to make a major impact in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Do you think there is a possibility of a third front emerging nationally?
One has to give some serious thoughts as to whether it makes sense to create a third front at the national level. We don’t have equal fronts in the country.
We need to have opposition unity for cumulatively adding up the numbers.
There is no question that BJP as a party will be the single largest and strongest party. But anything can happen and we need to be prepared for eventualities.
You share an excellent rapport with Oommen Chandy...
I have an enormous amount of respect for him. I couldn’t be like him if I tried. So I admire people who do things in a way that is exemplary.
He is a man who has his finger on the pulse of the people. No leader in any party can claim to have a greater rapport with the people of Kerala than Oommen Chandy.
You also share a good rapport with Pinarayi Vijayan...
I think he is a very efficient and serious person. In all issues I’ve dealt with him, he has come across as a no-nonsense person. If he gives you his word, it’s done. I have huge respect for him.
Your political career seems to be stuck. Where is Shashi Tharoor headed?
Shashi Tharoor is not likely to stay in a rut for long. Let me leave it there (chuckles).