A day after Congress leader Shashi Tharoor claimed that he was not invited to the Nilambur byelection campaign, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph refuted the Thiruvananthapuram MP's claims.
The KPCC president, on Friday, said Tharoor’s name was on the list of the star campaigners for the constituency.
Joseph said they had officially published the list and then submitted it to the election commission. "He (Tharoor) was abroad most of the time, and then in Delhi. I don’t know if he even came to Kerala,” the KPCC president added.
Joseph said all other leaders had come and cooperated in the election campaign, except A.K. Anthony. Senior party leaders like Ramesh Chennithala and Kodikunnil Suresh had also joined the bypoll campaign for UDF candidate Aryadan Shoukath.
Tharoor had told reporters that his party never asked him to join the Nilambur bypoll campaign. He said he “wasn’t invited by the party. But that's alright.”
#WATCH | Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala | "I was not invited by the party (for Nilambur by-election campaign)... Yes, there may have been some differences between me and the leadership. Those can be sorted out in closed-door conversations... So far, no one has reached out to me,"… pic.twitter.com/ZvQeWZuQs6
— ANI (@ANI) June 19, 2025
Tharoor had been on an official diplomatic tour abroad, which included meetings in the US, after Operation Sindoor while the bypoll campaign was underway. He further added that the leadership showed no urgency when he returned.
The Congress leader also had downplayed claims that said there was a rift between him and the party.
While he was on his diplomatic tour, Tharoor drew criticism from Congress for praising Narendra Modi for the military campaign against Pakistan and omitting the fact that similar strikes had happened during the UPA regime.
The Nilambur assembly constituency bypoll was held on Thursday following the resignation of P.V. Anvar, who severed ties with the CPI(M)-led LDF over certain allegations raised by him against Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his close aides.
The counting will take place on Monday (June 23).
