Shashi Tharoor: The gentleman Congress can’t tame?

India Today

Is Congress sidelining Shashi Tharoor, or is he making his own moves? From praising Kerala’s Left government to questioning Congress’ strategy, he’s stirring the pot again. I

Transcript

00:00Is Shashi Tharoor leaving the Congress Party?

00:07He's a man with a steel spine, the unflinching Shashi Tharoor!

00:11The Congress MP's cosmopolitan style has always made him stand out in a system that's more

00:16attuned to roadside rallies and combative rhetoric.

00:19My life dream is to talk English like you.

00:23Shashi Tharoor is an Englishman.

00:26I know a Hindi proverb, that the chicken of the house is equal to the lentil of the house.

00:30But these days, because of these governments, the cost of living has increased so much

00:35that even the lentil of the house has become equal to the chicken of the house.

00:38In 2025, one year before the assembly elections in Kerala, that gentleman politician label

00:43has once again landed Tharoor in hot water within his own party.

00:46We will tell you why.

00:48I'm Manish Adhikari and you're watching First Things First.

00:50Is he being sidelined by the grand old party now?

00:53I'm seriously examining all the options that are available to me in the present situation.

00:59It sounds like Shashi Tharoor is sending a message loud and clear to the Congress high command.

01:03He's got options and he's not afraid to explore them if he feels sidelined.

01:08The diplomat turned MP has now stirred the pot by praising the CPM led government's policies in Kerala,

01:13a move that seems to have irked his party.

01:15As far as our sources, K.C. Venugopal in fact called just a couple of days back Shashi Tharoor

01:21and reprimanded him for writing that piece wherein he praised left government in Kerala.

01:28In another interview for the Indian Express' Malayalam podcast Vartamanam,

01:31Tharoor highlighted the lack of a strong Congress leader in Kerala,

01:34a state now under left rule for two consecutive terms.

01:37He also praised Kerala's start-up growth, challenging the left-means stagnation narrative.

01:42This essentially puts Congress in a tough spot.

01:44If they can't counter the LDS economic success,

01:46building an anti-incumbency wave before local elections becomes a challenge.

01:50He is a big leader in Kerala, especially in Thiruvananthapuram because he's been elected repeatedly.

01:56And then he said that the Congress needs to really figure out and strategize better.

02:02Just days earlier, his praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with US President Donald Trump

02:07also drew criticism from the party.

02:09I think calling Mr. Modi a better negotiator than himself is astonishing.

02:13Mr. Trump says Mr. Modi is better than him.

02:16So I think we are looking at a very high degree of praise from a man who is not known for saying praiseworthy things.

02:22These soundbites of Tharoor raise the question,

02:24is he laying the groundwork for a future outside the Congress or is he simply being a maverick within?

02:30Either way, it's clear he's not afraid to speak his mind,

02:33and that might just be his biggest strength and the party's biggest challenge.

02:38In many ways, Tharoor's stance is reminiscent of a pop culture anti-hero.

02:44Rebellious and occasionally misunderstood by his own team.

02:47Think Loki from the Marvel Universe.

02:49Part of the group, but never entirely on the same page.

02:54One structural factor that works against free-thinking politicians like Tharoor is the party whip system.

02:59Essentially, a mandate for members to vote along party lines in Parliament.

03:03There are three kinds of whips in Indian Parliament.

03:05A one-line whip just informs members about a vote and lets them abstain.

03:09A two-line whip asks them to be present but doesn't dictate how to vote.

03:13The three-line whip, which is the usual practice now, tells members to show up and vote as per the party's stand.

03:19It's called a three-line whip because it comes with three thick lines under each sentence,

03:23basically a do-as-you're-told order.

03:26It's bad enough that this is the norm inside Parliament,

03:28but even worse, this virtual gag extends even outside, in the daily run of politics.

03:32It's almost blasphemous, therefore, to praise another party,

03:35and Tharoor is known to give in every once in a while.

03:38Our Parliament is the result of that magical exchange of hopes and promises.

03:43A 23-year career as a diplomat in the United Nations,

03:46Tharoor, some say, has been exposed to the ways of Western democracies,

03:49where speaking out of turn as a politician doesn't invite the rap on the knuckles as it does in India.

03:54Not all those who introduce speakers have realised

03:57that the internet might give you credit for things you've never actually done.

04:01Also, a polished accent and a Twitter feed sprinkled with references to Shakespeare or Game of Thrones

04:07might charm the social media-savvy crowd,

04:09but on the ground, perceptions of elitism can be a political curse in a country

04:14where mass appeal hinges on colloquial expression and direct voter connect.

04:22Ultimately, whether Tharoor is a misfit because of his cosmopolitan style

04:25or because the system does not give thinkers enough room to breathe is open to debate.

04:30What's not in question is that Tharoor is a rare breed,

04:34the charming gentleman in an arena that prizes the hardened street fighter.

04:38And in Indian politics, that's both an asset and a liability he's yet to fully overcome.

04:43Tell us what you think about Shashi Tharoor, whether he should stay on in the Congress

04:47or maybe just go on and write more books, offer more lectures maybe,

04:50or join the BJP?

04:53I'm Manish Adhikari, thank you for watching First Things First.

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