Former Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha wrote an open letter to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Monday amid rumours about a potential “rift” between the Congress leadership and Kerala Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.
After Shashi Tharoor‘s comments fueled doubts about his relationship with the Congress, Jha said in a long post on X, “I am writing to you publicly here because no one within the Congress is probably going to tell you this. So as usual, let me bell the cat.”
“Leadership (corporate or political or any other) is about having difficult conversations. It is about trouble-shooting. It is not about living in denial; problems have to be addressed, they cannot be wished away,” Jha said.
He added that Shashi Tharoor is “an outstanding parliamentarian”. He said, “It is disappointing that once again a great asset of the party is being forced to talk to the media to get his message through to you or the Congress leadership.”
“No problem is intractable; the key question is do we have the will to solve them in everyone’s interest? And that too quickly,” Jha said.
The former Congress spokesperson said the Congress must be focused on taking on the BJP, “but a prerequisite for that is to first get the house in order.”
“This cannot become an ongoing unresolved challenge for years as it paralyses the energy and drive of the Congress workers and supporters. A challenger party has to be swift, desperate, risk-taking, hungry and on a constant prowl. It cannot be business as usual, for sure,” Jha said.
Jha concluded by saying, “We need to the hit the nail on the head going forward, but right now, we seem to be hitting our head on the nail. I am sure the party and you will sort this out pronto. Good luck!”
Shashi Tharoor triggers political storm
Shashi Tharoor recently triggered a political storm as he praised the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government’s handling of Kerala’s economy. His comments in an article in an English daily drew criticism from fellow Congress leaders in the state.
Later, in an interview to a Malayalam podcast, Tharoor noted that if the Congress did not try to expand its appeal, it would be sitting in the opposition for the third consecutive time in Kerala.
Tharoor was further cited as saying that “several workers feel that there is an absence of a leader in Kerala’s Congress.” He e also said that he was elected as MP four times from Thiruvananthapuram and that if the Congress did not need his services, he had “other options” including speaking tours and books.
Shashi Tharoor asks Rahul Gandhi about his role in Congress
According to reports, Shashi Tharoor met Congress MP Rahul Gandhi earlier and sought clarity on his role in the Congress.
Shashi Tharoor reportedly expressed dissatisfaction over him being sidelined in the Congress and lack of opportunities — such as not being included in major Parliamentary debates.
To these, Rahul Gandhi had no answer, reports said.
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