Congress MP Shashi Tharoor will not attend the meeting convened by the party 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 was ill-treated by kerala Congress leadership
Tharoor’s decision to not attend the meeting came in the wake of allegations that he was ill-treated by the state leadership and Rahul Gandhi at the recently organised ‘Mahapanchayat’ in Ernakulam.
Though Congress leaders from the state unit and the high command attempted to reach out to him, Tharoor reportedly did not respond and said he will instead attend the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode on Saturday.
Tharoor had no desire to contest assembly elections
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.
Congress issues clarification
Congress sources said PM Modi has an event in Shashi Tharoor's Lok Sabha constituency today, and it was necessary for him to be there. Therefore, Tharoor had taken permission from the party high command to be absent from today's meeting in Delhi.
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