As cracks widen in Congress, is Shashi Tharoor looking at a political repositioning?

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has once again drawn attention for comments that differ from his party’s official position. In a recent article for a newspaper, Tharoor described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “prime asset” for India on the global stage.

 

His remarks stand in contrast to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s continued criticism of the prime minister’s foreign policy. The article was also shared by the Prime Minister’s Office on social media, further highlighting the gap between Tharoor and his party.

 

This has also put a question mark on Tharoor's survival in the Congress. Moreover, the back-to-back endorsement of Modi from the opposition leader has signalled two important aspects. One is Tharoor's growing resentment with the Congress. And second, the Congress's inability to take sufficient measures to contain Tharoor's defiant voice.

 

Party insiders think after Tharoor was sidelined in the recent state-level appointments where he was expecting a bigger role, the Thiruvananthapuram MP has found himself alienated from the Congress. Tharoor is, according to a senior leader in Kerala, trying to find a way to upgrade his political position, therefore softening up to the BJP.

 

However, other leaders rule out any possible switch and suggest that he will continue to remain in the party. Some senior Congress leaders believe Tharoor’s comments give the BJP an opportunity to question the party’s unity and weaken its criticism of the government.

 

There is speculation that Tharoor may be trying to reposition himself politically. However, most Congress leaders say he is unlikely to leave the party. One leader said, “If the party acts too harshly, it could backfire and damage the Congress more broadly.”

 

A section of Congress leaders thinks that any strong action, like expulsion, will make him a political martyr, leaving him to operate as a fierce Congress foe. According to senior Congress leaders, however, this indecisiveness over Tharoor has also damaged the party's narrative against the ruling dispensation.

 

A Congress leader said, "Earlier there were occasional departures from the party’s core line on Modi, now it has become routine. At a time when Rahul Gandhi and the Congress are trying to sharpen our criticism of the BJP government’s failures, such praise blurs the message."

 

For now, the Congress appears to be avoiding direct action, though internal disagreements over Tharoor’s position remain unresolved.

India