Shashi Tharoor said – I am not afraid of anyone, no one needs to be afraid of me
Malappuram (Kerala). Unfazed by the ruckus within the party over his Malabar tour and the support he is getting, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday continued with his yatra and met senior leaders of UDF-ally IUML here and said he was not afraid of anyone. and no one need be afraid of them.
Asked by the media who was afraid of his visit to Kerala, Tharoor said, “I am not afraid of anyone and no one needs to be afraid of me.” Not interested.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP’s remarks assume significance amid speculation that a section of the Congress leadership in Kerala appears apprehensive of his growing support and the emergence of a Tharoor faction within the party in the state, where the party wrested power from rival CPI(M) in 2016. Had lost
Tharoor, however, downplayed his meeting with IUML leaders at the residence of Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal in Panakkad, saying it was just a courtesy call on his way to a program in the district.
Other senior leaders of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) present there also described nothing unusual in his visit and said that they all meet Thangal whenever they pass through the area. Tharoor, along with his staunch supporter and MP MK Raghavan, also said they had no intention or interest in forming a group.
Tharoor said, some people are saying that this (his visit) is a divisive strategy or factionalism. We do not intend to form any group nor are we interested in it. Congress is already full of ‘A’ and ‘I’ groups and now there is no need to add letters like ‘O’ and ‘V’. In Kerala, the ‘A’ and ‘I’ groups have been active in the Congress party since the time of Karunakaran and AK Antony, both former chief ministers.
The Congress leader said, if there has to be one letter, it should be ‘U’ for a united Congress, which is what we all need. Nothing unusual in this tour. I do not see the need to see any great deal in two UDF MPs meeting leaders of an ally.
He said that at a time when divisive politics was active in the country, there was a need for politics that brings everyone together and it is commendable that IUML has recently organized programs in Chennai, Bengaluru and Mumbai to promote brotherhood . After meeting Tharoor, Thangal said that the MP’s family has maintained a close relationship with him since his arrival in Kerala.
Thangal said, he is invited to all important events, occasions. So, when he was here he came to visit us. Asked if he wanted Tharoor to be active in Kerala politics, he said, “He (Tharoor) is already active.” He is an MP from Kerala. He won twice from here.
He is not confined to Thiruvananthapuram. He is a good campaigner. Tharoor’s Malabar tour appears to have rattled a significant section of the Congress in Kerala and some of them suspect an agenda behind his move.
