Political speculators have been examining Shashi Tharoor’s every statement and looking for hidden undertones in his behavior. Will he be leaving Congress? Does he have a soft spot for the BJP? What about his private life? Will he think about getting married again? These circulating queries have finally been addressed by the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, who has frequently crossed party lines.
“Some in my own party oppose me, but I speak for India and Kerala’s future,” Tharoor explained, denying he was about to change sides. Although he was open about the internal opposition he encountered, he reiterated his allegiance to Congress. “I’ll be there if the party choose to use my abilities. “I have other options if not,” he replied.
There are rising rumors of a rift among Congress at the time of his speech. His latest selfie with Union Minister Piyush Goyal caused a stir and fueled rumors about his future in politics.
Goyal had previously made fun of Tharoor’s “foreign accent,” therefore the picture of the two smiling together was unexpected. This has not gone over well with Congress leaders, as has his praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Donald Trump and his admiration for the economic policies of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left administration.
Reacting to the controversy, Tharoor clarified his stance. “At the national level, the BJP has shown the ability to put forward a strong organisation which we haven’t been able to replicate in many states. In Kerala, the CPI(M) has shown similar strength in the last two elections, and I don’t see anything wrong in pointing that out. Congress lacks organisational strength at the booth level. We are not a cadre-based party; we have many leaders, but we lack workers. But I am against the plan of changing India into a ‘Hindu Rashtra.’ This is against our Constitution,” he said.
Party leaders have taken exception at his comments, especially in Kerala, where he reacted negatively to his remark about the “absence of a leader” in the state unit. The growing speculation about his standing in the party prompted a closed-door meeting between Tharoor and Rahul Gandhi, though the details of their discussion remain undisclosed.
While Congress has downplayed the tensions, Tharoor’s assertion that he has “options” if the party does not require his services has only added to the uncertainty. “If the party wants me, I will be there. If not, I have my own things to do. You should not think I don’t have any options,” he reiterated.
In Congress, Tharoor has long been a trailblazer. He was one of 23 leaders that demanded a change in the party’s leadership after the disastrous 2019 Lok Sabha election. He frequently disagrees with the party’s official position due to his own opinions on a variety of topics.
“I have expressed opinions on several issues that were not liked by Congress in the past, and I have been facing this situation for a long time,” he said. “I opposed Nehru’s panchayati raj, I opposed BJP’s Hindutva and communal agenda, I oppose Left ideology. I opposed the Emergency; it was wrong and suspended our liberties and freedom of expression. I have criticised everyone at some point. I have opinions, and sometimes they are not liked by my party.”
As political chatter surrounded him, Tharoor also addressed speculation about his personal life. On whether he plans to remarry, he was clear: “Not at all. I have had a lot of experience in life. In the last 10 years, I have been single.”
He acknowledged that his mother encouraged him to consider marriage again, but he remains content. “God hasn’t made me feel the need for it now,” he said.
He maintains his dedication to public service in spite of party strife. “Who am I to say anything if they don’t want me? They haven’t felt the need for me, but I’m ready if they do,” he said. There are plenty of possibilities for Shashi Tharoor, regardless of whether this is his final parliamentary campaign.
