The senior Congress leader’s remarks come amid reports that he was reportedly “upset” with the party leadership following a perceived snub by Rahul Gandhi at a recent event in Kochi, Kerala.
Speculation around Tharoor’s strained relations with the party intensified after his absence at a high-level Congress strategy meeting in New Delhi for Kerala polls last week. The meeting was attended by top Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, General Secretary KC Venugopal, Kerala in-charge Deepa Dasmunshi, Sachin Pilot, KJ George, and state unit chief Sunny Joseph along with Ramesh Chennithala and V.D. Satheesan.
The party, however, clarified that Tharoor had prior commitments at the Kerala Literature Festival (KLF) and had informed them in advance about his absence. Tharoor himself noted that continuous travel had made attending both the festival and party meetings challenging, adding, “I will certainly attend all party activities in Parliament, and at that time I can meet the party leadership.”
This was not the first time Tharoor skipped a high-level Congress meeting, with reports suggesting at least three similar absences in recent months. Despite missing the party meet, Tharoor attended Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official government event in Thiruvananthapuram, where he flagged off several trains.
Addressing the reports of differences with the party, Tharoor had earlier stated, “All I can say is that there are issues which I need to take up with my own party leadership and not in a public forum. I will be going to Delhi for Parliament, and I will get an opportunity to make my concerns very clear to the party leadership and get their viewpoint… have a proper conversation.”
