Apparently making a deft move to enter the State’s political sphere, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, albeit after an honourable defeat to veteran party colleague Mallikarjun Kharge in the party’s presidential polls last month, is beginning a four-day campaign in Malabar from Sunday.
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Backed by Kozhikode MP M.K. Raghavan, Mr. Tharoor will meet a host of leaders, including Indian Union Muslim League State president Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal, national general secretary P.K. Kunhalikutty, and general secretary of the All India Sunni Jamiyyathul Ulama Kanthapuram A. P. Aboobacker Musliyar. His whirlwind tour of Kannur, Kozhikode, and Malappuram will be a prelude to a Statewide programme in the near future, say party sources.
They say Mr. Tharoor’s tour assumes significance against the backdrop of IUML leaders taking exception to Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president K. Sudhakaran’s remarks about the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh that had triggered a row in the State. Now, the Nair Service Society leadership is reportedly planning to invite him as the chief guest for the Mannam Jayanti celebrations.
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But some senior party leaders are not amused at Mr. Tharoor’s single-handed attempts to revive the electoral fortunes of the party in the State. “We learn that some senior Congress leaders have restrained Youth Congress workers from taking part in Tharoor’s campaign. Whatever happens, the scheduled programmes will take place at the respective venues,” Mr. Raghavan told The Hindu on Saturday.
Despite speculation on Mr. Tharoor’s tour, Mr. Raghavan feels that his alternative style of functioning will set a new benchmark for politicians. Nevertheless, many leaders believe that Mr. Tharoor’s campaign on his home turf will lead to a new faction in the already leader-driven interest groups in the Congress party.
Incidentally, the District Congress Committees (DCC) in Kannur and Malappuram, which had earlier decided to host interactive sessions with Mr. Tharoor, has backed out while the Kozhikode DCC has decided to remain aloof.
On Sunday, Mr. Tharoor will meet writer M.T. Vasudevan Nair, veteran Congress leader K.P. Unnikrishnan, and Loktantrik Janata Dal State president M. V. Shreyamskumar. He will participate in about a dozen events in the three districts.
Mr. Tharoor will hold meetings with the Calicut Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Indian Lawyers Congress, Calicut Bar Association, and the Indian Medical Association. Interactions with students at Providence Women’s College, Kozhikode, and the Hyderali Shihab Thangal Academy for Civil Services have also been scheduled.