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Putting speculations about a possible party shift to rest, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said he is on the same page as Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in serving the people of India.
In a post on social media platform X, Tharoor stated that he met with Indian National Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.
“Thanks to @INCIndia President @kharge ji and LS LoP @RahulGandhi ji for a warm and constructive discussion today on a wide range of subjects. We are all on the same page as we move forward in the service of the people of India,” Tharoor wrote.
The post was accompanied by a picture of the three Congress leaders.
Shashi Tharoor, who is currently serving as a Lok Sabha MP representing Kerala’s capital district of Thiruvananthapuram, has several conflicts with the Congress in the recent past, especially after he supported Operation Sindoor, which was launched by the BJP-led Union government as a response to the Pahalgam terror attacks.
Recently, at a literature festival in Kerala’s Kozhikode, Tharoor said that he stands by his words and that he has not breached any party lines by saying that the terror attack deserved a “kinetic response”.
“I have at no stage violated any of the Congress’ positions in Parliament; the only issue on which there has been public disagreement on principle is about Operation Sindoor where I did take a very strong stand, and I remain unapologetic about that because after Pahalgam happened, I myself, as an observer and commentator, I had written a column in the Indian Express, which I think I gave the title 'After Pahalgam', they gave it a title 'Hit Hard, Hit Smart'. I said in that article - this can not go unpunished; there has to be a kinetic response,” he said at the festival.
Tharoor has also missed two party meetings recently, which added to the buzz about his ongoing rift with the party, leading to speculations about the possibility of him jumping ship. One of the meetings was a crucial session meant to address the upcoming Assembly elections in his home state of Kerala.
“Whatever issues I have to raise, I will convey them directly to the party leadership. There is no doubt that I will get that opportunity, especially since everyone will be together during the Parliament session,” Tharoor had said, when asked about this.