Congress presidential poll candidate Shashi Tharoor noted that he doesn’t expect support from ‘big leaders’ in the party in the upcoming internal election. The Thiruvananthapuram MP, however, did reiterate that he needs ‘everyone’s support’ for the same. Tharoor is currently in Kerala for his poll campaigning.
“I was not expecting any support from the big leaders of the party and I am not expecting that now either. In fact, I met party workers at Nagpur, Wardha and then Hyderabad. They are the ones asking me to contest and not back away from it,” Tharoor told reporters.
“I assured them I will not back away. I will not betray those who have supported me till now. Their confidence in me is what gives me the strength to move forward,” he added.
Shashi Tharoor’s statement comes in the backdrop of Kerela Congress chief K Sudhakaran publicly declaring his support for the other contender and senior leader Mallikarjun Kharge for the post of party chief.
Responding to questions about whether Sudhakaran’s public support for Kharge was targeted at discouraging others from supporting him, Tharoor said, “Maybe. But I am not saying that. I do not need to decipher what is going on in people’s minds. I will say one thing, whatever one says secretly or publicly, the ballot is secret.”
“No one is going to know who voted for whom. People can vote according to their wishes and beliefs. They can decide whom they want to strengthen the party and prepare it to counter the challenges it would face in the future,” Tharoor added.
The Thiruvananthapuram MP further noted that supporting Kharge is Sudhakaran’s personal choice and ‘there’s nothing wrong with that.’
Notably, the AICC on Monday issued a circular which clearly stated that AICC general secretaries/ in-charges, secretaries, joint secretaries, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) presidents, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leaders, heads of frontal organisations, chiefs of departments, cells and all official spokespersons ‘shall not campaign for or against contesting candidates.’
‘If they wish to support any candidate, they must first resign from their organisational post, after that they participate in the campaign process,’ the circular noted.
Talking about Sudhakaran declaring support for Kharge despite the circular, Tharoor noted that ‘if (Congress’) election authority wants to do something about it, it is up to them.’
