Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is set to skip a crucial strategy meeting of the party scheduled for Friday, triggering fresh speculation about internal tensions within the Congress ahead of the Kerala Assembly elections. Sources indicate that Tharoor is deeply upset over what he perceives as repeated attempts to sideline him, with the latest episode linked to Rahul Gandhi’s failure to acknowledge his presence at a recent party event in Kochi.
The incident reportedly took place during the ‘Maha Panchayath’ event held on January 19 in Kochi to felicitate Congress leaders who performed well in the local body elections. According to sources, Rahul Gandhi acknowledged several senior leaders seated on the stage by name but did not mention Tharoor, despite his presence on the dais. The omission is said to have hurt Tharoor, who is a four-time Member of Parliament and one of the three Congress Working Committee members from Kerala.
While Tharoor’s office has officially stated that he will be unable to attend the meeting due to prior commitments at the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode, sources close to him suggest that his absence reflects deeper discontent with the way he has been treated within the party, particularly by the Kerala unit.
The development comes just weeks after Congress leaders had projected unity following discussions held on the sidelines of the Lakshya 2026 leadership camp in Wayanad. At that time, differences were believed to have been ironed out, and Tharoor had publicly asserted that he had never deviated from the party line. An understanding was also reportedly reached that he would not contest the Assembly elections but would campaign extensively across the state.
However, the Kochi episode appears to have reopened old fault lines within the party. Sources say Tharoor has conveyed his displeasure to senior party leaders, including Congress general secretary KC Venugopal and AICC in-charge for Kerala Deepa Das Munshi, pointing out what he described as mistreatment and marginalisation.
Tharoor’s relationship with sections of the Congress leadership has witnessed strain in recent years, particularly following controversies over his public statements on foreign policy. Last year, his remarks on India-Pakistan relations and diplomatic outreach after the Pahalgam attack drew sharp criticism from party leaders, who accused him of straying from the official Congress position. Tharoor, however, has consistently maintained that there should be bipartisan consensus on foreign policy and that his views did not contradict the party’s stance.
So far, there has been no official response from the Congress leadership on Tharoor skipping the meeting or the alleged snub at the Kochi event. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is expected to chair the key strategy meeting with Kerala leaders to fine-tune the party’s roadmap for the upcoming Assembly polls.
As the Congress prepares for a critical electoral battle against the ruling LDF in Kerala, the episode highlights underlying challenges of cohesion within the party. How the leadership manages the discontent of senior leaders like Tharoor could play a significant role in shaping both internal dynamics and public perception in the months leading up to the elections.