‘If Rahul contests from Amethi, it will send strong message,' says Shashi Tharoor

Congress working committee member Shashi Tharoor has said if Rahul Gandhi contests from Amethi or any seats in UP it will send a strong message. Talking to DH’s Arjun Raghunath, Tharoor admitted that BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar will give a tough fight in Thiruvananthapuram.

This is the fourth time you are contesting from Thiruvananthapuram. Is Rajeev Chandrasekhar making it difficult for you?

Rajeev certainly has emerged as the main challenger. It’s not surprising as the BJP came second in the past two elections. This time they have much stronger resources and are making a huge effort. Hence, I am not taking anything for granted.

Chandrasekhar seems to be making a stronger presence with regard to posters and other campaign materials. Is fund crunches affecting your campaign?

No doubt that there is a vast gap in the resources available to me and him, which is visible in posters and hoardings. We are doing our best to enhance our visibility. Since I have been an MP here for 15 years, I am not a stranger. Rajeev needs to introduce himself.

Chandrasekhar is moving legally against you over allegations of giving money to voters. How will you counter?

I didn't make any direct allegation against him. When a journalist sought my reaction to allegations that he was spending money to influence voters, I replied that I was also hearing the same. Once I receive legal notice, I will give the reply.

The contest in Thiruvananthapuram seems to be between two high-profile candidates rather than political ideologies. Is that so?

I have a different vision of a better society and more inclusive India than anyone who represents the BJP. BJP rides on a platform of bigotry and communalism. Their entire message rests on demonising the minorities. Hence, they are not winning any seats in Kerala as the state has 47 per cent minorities.

Modi's slogan is 'Sab ke saath, sab ka vikas'. Had he really meant it and acted accordingly he might have been able to influence people. But he made that slogan and spent ten years in office demonising minorities, attacking them, attacking Kerala for being the home to parties like IUML.

Your thoughts on Left Front candidate Panniyan Raveendran.

His candidacy has not caught fire, maybe because Thiruvananthapuram often witnesses people voting differently in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, based on issues. Even six out of the seven assembly seats in my constituency went to the Left in the 2021 assembly polls. I am confident of pulling back those seats in the next assembly elections.

Is the candidacy of Rahul Gandhi in Wayanad creating a wave in favour of Congress-led UDF across Kerala this time, as witnessed in 2019?

Since I have been focusing more on Thiruvananthapuram so far, I could not give enough attention to other constituencies. But many journalists covering other constituencies said there is an overwhelming UDF wave. Only in a couple of places there is a tight fight between UDF and LDF. Thiruvananthapuram is the only place where the BJP is a serious challenge. No where else BJP is even close to UDF.

Here we are expecting a pretty big sweep in Kerala and Rahul could well be a factor. He is very much liked and admired and very much popular in Kerala. The Bharat Jodo Yatra was a huge success here.

Do you think Rahul should contest from Amethi?

The decision is entirely up to him. But I see a lot of advantages for the party if he contests from any seats in UP. It will send a powerful message. On top of that, I welcome his decision to contest from Wayanad.

Is the lack of a leader, like Narendra Modi for NDA, a setback for the I.N.D.I.A. bloc?

I don’t think projecting a leader is relevant in the parliamentary system. It is relevant only in the presidential system. Modi is running a parliamentary system presidentially. That is abnormal. In the parliamentary system, you are not voting for an individual but for a party, its policies and ideologies. Only the people of Varanasi can vote for Modi.

I.N.D.I.A bloc represents a collection of able, experienced, like minded leaders from a cross section of parties who all share a desire for a more democratic and inclusive India. We will come together and find the appropriate leader when the time comes. It actually worked in India on a number of occasions, the latest being that of Manmohan Singh. His was a hugely successful prime ministership. 

If you vote for I.N.D.I.A you will get a good Prime Minister. It may be Rahul Gandhi or Mallikarjun Kharge or someone else.

Don’t you think that Congress should have taken a stand on CAA in the manifesto?

I was in the manifesto committee, but could not attend the working committee meeting due to the campaign. CAA was in the draft. A total of 26 laws, including CAA, were listed in the draft for either repealing or amending. But for making the document more concise the list had to be dropped. Instead, it is mentioned that all anti-people laws will be repealed or amended. CAA is surely an anti-people law and we will take action as we assure the people of Kerala.

But that has given space for CPM to attack Congress?

Irony is that CPM is campaigning as if they didn't realise that this is an election for unseating BJP. They are campaigning as if the election is against the Congress. We are supposed to share the objective to get rid of the BJP govt at the centre. In Thiruvananthapuram they the left is campaigning entirely against me and not mentioning BJP.

Did the Congress and left-parties fall in the trap of BJP and Sangh Parivar agenda of campaigning more on communal lines rather than development and welfare issues?

I don't think so. I myself brought out a 68 page booklet highlighting my development initiatives. We are campaigning on development issues and at the same time we are also running our political stance on national and political issues.

CPM is making a rather embarrassing bid for gaining Muslim votes. They are attacking the Congress with the hopes that they can show the Muslim voters that they are more supportive to the Mmuslim community than we are. This is a silly game to play. The CPM seems to be more desperate in Kerala as these are signs of panic that they are about to lose every seat in the state.

What about Modi’s projections of crossing the 400 mark in Lok Sabha and double-digit seats in Kerala?

I already said the two digits Modi could expect are zero and zero. Four hundred is a pure piece of propaganda aimed at showing confidence to voters. They often did it in many state elections.

My assessment is that BJP won't get a majority this time. In 2019 they maxed out on all the states where they are strong. The Congress did relatively poor. Hence the Congress has only one way to go, that is up, and the BJP has only one way to go, that is down.If they lose 32 seats they lose their majority. If they lose 50 seats they won't have enough allies to make up the numbers.

Desperation of BJP even shows up in their wooing of allies who were once unceremoniously dismissed, like Chandrababu Naidu. Their bids to woo Akali Dal in Punjab and the BJD in Odisha also ended up in both parties saying they don't need BJP.

BJP is humiliating itself like this as they know they are in bad shape. That's why they are arresting the leader of an opposition party and putting him in jail, freezing the bank accounts of the principal opposition party in the middle of elections. All these are signs of absolute desperation.

Women representation in Congress candidates is very low. Why?

Yes, only one female candidate for Congress in Kerala. It is a disappointment for many of us. But we definitely wanted to give a lot of favour to the incumbents owing to the importance of this election. That's why even those prepared to step aside were asked to fight again as we need experienced persons. But with the assembly election we will ensure more women candidates.

Do you think there should be a retirement age for politicians?

Retirement age is a mechanical formula. I intend this to be my last LS election. But I may do other things that politics presents as an opportunity. Will Modi, who imposed a retirement age of 75 for his ministers, impose that on him? I don't see any signs of that.

You mentioned Congress winning back in Kerala in the 2026 Assembly polls. Will you be in the fray?

I will be only happy to take important roles in the Kerala assembly elections as Kerala deserves a better government than the present CPM government. The party will then decide what role I should play. But it is completely premature to talk about it now.