Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president K Sudhakaran on Sunday warned Congress MP Shashi Tharoor that he will face serious consequences if he opposes or rejects any decision taken by the party. The Congress’s Kerala chief made these remarks days after Tharoor had publicly spoken in favour of the semi-high speed rail corridor project proposed by the LDF government.
Shashi Tharoor had expressed his views in favour of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF's proposal for a semi-high speed rail corridor project in Kerala. However, the Congress party in Kerala had taken a stand against the Kerala rail project.
No one in the party has the authority to oppose the party's decisions and this is applicable for all, Sudhakaran told reporters in Kannur.
“Tharoor is only a single member in the party. If he yields to the party, he will be in the party. If he doesn’t he won’t be there in the party. It is applicable for all, be it Shashi Tharoor or K Sudhakaran. No one who is part of the party has the right to oppose or reject the decisions taken by the organization. Such an authority has not been given to anyone, including an MP. Congress is not just one Shashi Tharoor,” said Sudhakaran.
He also said that the party has asked Tharoor to give a written explanation on this issue. Sudhakaran also said that Tharoor is yet to get on the right track of Indian politics. The Congress Kerala chief also said that Tharoor is free to have his own opinion but he still has to obey the party.
“He can maintain his own opinion and protect it. But finally, he should obey the party. If party MLAs and MPs themselves do not follow the party’s official stand, then we can only sympathize over the unity in the party,” the KPCC chief said.
Earlier, Tharoor had also refused to sign the letter written by the UDF MPs to Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw against the rail corridor. The Indian National Congress is also a part of the United Democratic Front (Kerala) alliance. The letter written by the UDF MPs had urged the railways minister to issue a directive to stop land acquisition for the scheme.
Tharoor's stand for not signing the letter on K-Rail Project and going against the party's stand was criticized by many Congress leaders including former KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran among others.
