Have some 'issues' with party, will take them up with leadership: Shashi Tharoor
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Kozhikode (PTI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday said he has some "issues" with the party which he would take up with the leadership, but asserted that he has never violated the organisation's stated positions in Parliament.
Any internal differences should be discussed within the organisation and not through the media, he said.
His remarks come amid reports that Tharoor is upset over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi not adequately acknowledging his presence at a recent event in Kochi and over alleged repeated attempts by state party leaders to sideline him.
"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, I believe, to make my concerns very clear to the party leadership and get their viewpoint… have a proper conversation."
"I am in Congress for the past 17 years. Let's not go too far…as far as I am concerned, whatever has gone wrong, needs to be addressed and it will be addressed in an appropriate forum," he told PTI Videos.
Speaking to reporters here, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said he had informed the Congress leadership about his inability to attend a party meeting.
He said that some reports about him might be true, while others could be false.
Tharoor explained that he wanted to attend a literature festival and that continuous travel was difficult.
"However, I will certainly attend all party activities in Parliament, and at that time I can meet the party leadership," he said.
Responding to a question on alleged unfair treatment at a party event in Kochi, Tharoor said he would not comment on it.
He also said that he wanted to exhibit his book on Sree Narayana Guru at the literature festival.
Recalling an earlier instance, he said he had once been unable to attend the Jaipur Literature Festival due to a political engagement.
Earlier, answering questions during a session at the Kerala Literature Festival here, Tharoor said he had taken a strong stand on 'Operation Sindoor' and remained "unapologetic," about it.
Explaining his position, Tharoor said that as an observer, commentator and writer, he had written a newspaper column after the Pahalgam terror attack, stating that it should not go unpunished and that there should be a kinetic response.
He said that while India is focused on development, it should not be dragged into a prolonged conflict with Pakistan, and that any action should be limited to targeting terrorist camps.
Tharoor said that to his surprise, the Indian government did exactly what he had recommended.
"How could I be expected to criticise it when I myself recommended it. I supported it fully throughout Operation Sindoor and afterwards," he said.
When the government sent him abroad as part of a multi-party delegation over Operation Sindoor, his party, for some reason, did not like it.
"You can speak to them and find out," he said
Tharoor said it was Jawaharlal Nehru who posed the famous question: "Who lives if India dies."
"When India is at stake, when India’s security and its place in the world are involved, India comes first," he said.
He added that political parties may have differences as part of the process of building a better India, but when national interests are involved, India must prevail.
Terrorists had gunned down 26 people, mostly tourists, in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in April 2025, sending shockwaves across the country. In response, India launched Operation Sindoor, a precision military offensive targeting terror launchpads in Pakistan.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said that Tharoor continues to be an integral part of the party and that he had informed the leadership in advance about his inability to attend the party meeting.
“He is not someone who stays away from party programmes. He had informed the party about the reasons for not attending the meeting,” Chennithala said.
He said that unlike him, Tharoor is not only a politician but also a writer and author who is engaged at the international level.
“He is not a full-time party worker. He is also a writer and a public speaker who is engaged in events in India and abroad. We are full-time party workers and can give priority to party events,” he said.
Chennithala said that no one could distance Tharoor from the party.
Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan and Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunny Joseph also said that Tharoor had informed the party leadership about his absence in advance and that no controversy should be created over his absence.
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Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
