Congressman Shashi Tharoor says, ‘My stand is not pro-BJP, but pro-government or pro-India on certain issues’

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said on Friday (Jan 30, 2026) that his stand on certain issues may have been seen as pro-BJP by the media, but he has only seen it as pro-government or pro-India.

Mr Tharoor said he has also made it clear in the past that he does not like to talk about politics on some international matters and prefers to talk about the country instead.

“It is not something new, that is what I have always said,” the Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram told reporters here.

Last year, a row had erupted over his comments on the India-Pakistan conflict and diplomatic contacts after the Pahalgam attack. His comments were against the Congress stand and many party leaders lashed out at him and questioned his intentions.

While speaking to reporters, Mr Tharoor also admitted that a party member should not go against the party line. “I have always supported the party in parliament and that is why there is no need to worry,” he said.

‘I’m going to Congress’

When asked by reporters if he can categorically state that he will not leave the Congress party, Mr Tharoor said: “I can say that I will be in the Congress and I am not going anywhere. I will be part of the poll campaign (in Kerala) and will work for the victory of the UDF.” “But why am I being asked to make such statements,” he asked.

Mr Tharoor met party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi on Thursday to redress his grievances, after which he said “all is well” and “we are all on the same page”.

Mr Tharoor was angry over the treatment meted out to him at a Kochi event recently and the attempts by some leaders to sideline him in Kerala.

The meeting comes ahead of the Kerala Assembly elections, which are of major importance for the Congress as it seeks to wrest power from the Left after a decade in the Opposition and is doing all it can to secure a victory in Kerala.