Tharoor declines to comment on discussions with CPI(M), leaders dismiss move
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has said that he has seen reports claiming that he had held discussions with persons associated with the CPI(M) in Dubai, but declined to comment on the matter.
While the ruling CPI (M) dismissed questions about any discussion on Tharoor joining the party as mere speculation, the Congress said he is a senior leader, any issues he had would be resolved and denied he was quitting the grand old organisation.
Tharoor, who is currently attending a literature festival in Dubai, was approached by reporters seeking his response to the reports on Sunday.
He said he saw the reports during his flight to Dubai and that it would not be appropriate to comment on such matters while being in a foreign country.
Speculation about the Thiruvananthapuram MP possibly switching to another political party surfaced following reports that he was upset over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi not adequately acknowledging him at a recent event in Kochi and over alleged repeated attempts by party leaders in the state to sideline him.
Reacting to the developments, CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan on Monday dismissed questions about any discussion on Tharoor joining the party as mere speculation, saying such reports had no relevance.
"Tharoor continues to be a prominent leader of the Congress. He follows a different approach of regularly praising the BJP Prime Minister. In such a situation, I do not think rumours of him joining the CPI(M) are relevant," Govindan said.
When asked whether there would be any obstacle to accepting Tharoor if he decided to switch to the CPI(M), Govindan said the party followed a common rule of accepting individuals, groups or parties who were willing to oppose communal forces in national politics and approve of the development policies of the Left Front in the state.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, V D Satheesan, said he was unaware that Tharoor had caused any problem for the Congress.
"You give various reports and come to us for a response. What can I say about it," the senior Congress leader asked.
He said Tharoor was a senior party leader and that any issues, if at all, would be resolved.
"“If he has any complaint, the national leadership will examine it and we will bring it to their notice," he said.
UDF convener Adoor Prakash said Tharoor was a member of the Congress Working Committee and very much a party man.
He said it was wrong to project that Tharoor was leaving the Congress.
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Bridge portion collapses on Jammu outskirts; 3-4 labourers feared trapped, 1 rescued
Jammu (PTI): A portion of a small bridge collapsed in the Bantalab area on the outskirts of Jammu city on Friday, trapping at least three to four labourers under the debris, while one injured worker was rescued, official sources said.
Authorities have closed the road link following the collapse of the portion of the bridge.
The incident occurred when labourers were carrying out repair work on a retaining wall near the bridge that was damaged in last year's flash floods, the sources said.
According to the sources, a section of the bridge suddenly gave way, burying workers engaged at the site under the rubble.
Police, Army and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams launched rescue operations to extricate those buried under the debris. They pulled out one injured labourer and shifted him to a hospital, the sources said.
Family members of the labourers present at the site said around six workers engaged at the site at the time of the incident came under the debris when the structure collapsed. The family members said while two of the labourers managed to escape, four got trapped.
The sources said those trapped included the husband of a woman labourer, a mason, an unmarried labourer and a relative of the contractor.
There was no official confirmation on the exact number of persons trapped under the debris till the filing of this report.
The rescue operations are ongoing.
