Shashi Tharoor goes forward: Discontent brewing among Congress leaders

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Discontent is brewing among Congress leaders as Shashi Tharoor, who expressed his desire to shift his focus to Kerala, is moving forward by meeting community leaders. Yesterday, top leaders of the party criticized Tharoor, who openly expressed his desire to contest the next assembly elections and become the chief minister. However, Tharoor corrected his stance by stating that he did not say that he wishes to become Chief Minister. Congress workers are concerned whether the party will face a crisis over TN Prathapan MP's public statement that he does not want to contest the Lok Sabha elections.

At the inauguration ceremony of the K Karunakaran memorial, all the leaders criticized Tharoor without naming him. Taking an indirect dig at Tharoor, Ramesh Chennithala said that those who have prepared coats should take them off as the assembly elections are still four years away. K Muraleedharan MP, who had been supporting Tharoor from earlier, also raised indirect criticism against Tharoor. AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal, who inaugurated the ceremony, responded by giving a warning to Tharoor. He also expressed his displeasure at the public statements. According to K Muraleedharan, the high command is in charge of selecting the candidates, and what should be expressed within the party should not be said in front of the public. However, opposition leader VD Satheesan and KPCC president K Sudhakaran also did not raise criticism.

Even though Tharoor is saying that he did not express any desire to become the Chief Minister, his moves are aimed at the CM post. The Congress leadership is also upset that community leaders are welcoming Tharoor when he goes to visit them. Some leaders believe that Tharoor's move to concentrate in Malabar is part of some strategy. After K Karunakaran, there has been a significant decline in the strength of the Congress in Malabar. Tharoor's recent moves are being interpreted as an attempt to step into that gap.