New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday dedicated to the nation the Vizhinjam International Seaport in Kerala. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was present for the program. Referencing him by name during his speech, the PM said that his presence will “disturb the sleep” of some.
PM Modi takes jab at Congress
Speaking during the inauguration of the port, the PM made a direct reference to the presence of Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on the dais. He said, “Today, Shashi Tharoor is sitting here. Today’s program will disturb the sleep of some people. The message has gone wherever it had to go.”
Probably for the first time in Indian political history, a leader at the level of PM has made such a public acknowledgement across the aisle. Shashi Tharoor has been a 4-time Congress MP from Kerala’s capital, Thiruvananthapuram. His relationship with the party however is not in the best of shape currently. He has increasingly projected his individual standing on several issues and these are often different from the line taken by the Congress party’s state leadership.
Earlier in the day, Tharoor personally received PM Narendra Modi at the Thiruvananthapuram airport. He however rued the fact that several flights from Delhi, including his own, were delayed from Delhi. Taking to social media platform ‘X’ he said, “Despite delays at the dysfunctional Delhi airport, managed to land in Thiruvananthapuram in time to receive Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his arrival in my constituency. Looking forward to his official commissioning of Vizhinjam port, a project I have been proud to have been involved with since its inception.”
The meeting with the PM gains significance as Tharoor has increasingly voiced his dissatisfaction with the Congress party’s Kerala unit. In one instance he even pointed to a “leadership vacuum” in the state Congress unit. He also wants to know his own position within the Congress as a whole and within the party’s state unit in particular. For this he has reportedly had several meetings with the party’s top brass, including meeting with Rahul Gandhi. However no concrete outcomes were ever made public after these meetings.
Such public posturing by Tharoor and now the PM have raised doubts in the minds of many, regarding Tharoor’s future plans in politics. However Tharoor himself and the Congress party have always dismissed any talks of a rift. While Tharoor said that he remained committed to Congress party goals, Rahul Gandhi shared a silhouette image of Kerala Congress leaders standing together, including what appears to be Tharoor’s outline, with the caption: “They stand as one.”
