Cong plans Kerala poll strategy, plays down Tharoor’s absence

New Delhi (TIP)- With the Kerala Assembly elections approaching, the Congress leadership on Friday held a strategy meeting with senior leaders from the state to fine-tune its poll roadmap, strengthen coordination within the United Democratic Front (UDF) and project unity ahead of the high-stakes contest expected in April.
The meeting, chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge at his residence, was attended by Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and most members of the party’s top leadership from Kerala.
However, the absence of senior leader and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor triggered speculation about possible discontent within the state unit. The Congress leadership dismissed such suggestions, saying Tharoor had informed the party well in advance about his inability to attend due to prior commitments. Party leaders said discussions centred on election preparedness, campaign messaging, alliance management within the UDF and consolidating gains made in recent local body elections. Those present included AICC general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal, Kerala in-charge Deepa Dasmunshi, senior observers Sachin Pilot and K J George, former state Congress president Ramesh Chennithala, Leader of the Congress Legislature Party V D Satheesan and newly appointed Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunny Joseph.
Chennithala said that seat-sharing within the UDF was discussed and cited the alliance’s performance in recent panchayat elections as indicative of public support. He rejected reports of internal discord, stating that Tharoor had prior engagements in Kozhikode, which he had communicated earlier.
He also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Sabarimala gold loss issue, alleging inaction by the Centre.
Party sources, however, said certain developments in recent weeks had contributed to perceptions of Tharoor’s dissatisfaction. Earlier this month, Rahul Gandhi did not acknowledge Tharoor on stage at a public event in Kochi. However, Tharoor’s office reiterated that his absence was solely due to his participation in the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode.