'List Included His Name, Was Invited': Congress Debunks Shashi Tharoor's 'Exclusion' Claim

Last Updated:June 20, 2025, 13:19 IST

KPCC chief Sunny Joseph denied Shashi Tharoor’s claim of being excluded from the Congress star campaigners list for the Nilambur bypoll, stating his name was included.

A file photo of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor (PTI Image)

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Sunny Joseph on Friday denied Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s claims of being left out of the party’s star campaigners list for the bypoll in the Nilambur constituency in Thiruvananthapuram.

Joseph also said the party had published the list officially and had submitted it to the Election Commission, and that Tharoor was abroad with the parliamentary delegation during that time.

“We had published the list and submitted it to the Election Commission," Joseph said while talking to reporters.

“The list included Shashi Tharoor’s name. He was abroad most of the time, and then in Delhi. I don’t know if he even came to Kerala," he added.

On Thursday, Tharoor had said he has differences of opinion with some in the party leadership, but he is not going to speak about them in light of the bypoll in the Nilambur constituency.

Tharoor had also claimed Congress had excluded him from its list of star campaigners.

Speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, Tharoor, who came under attack from some party colleagues for supporting the Modi government’s stand following the Pahalgam terror attack, said that the Congress, its values, and its workers are very dear to him.

He said he has worked closely with party workers for 16 years and regards them as close friends and brothers.

Tharoor, however, did not clarify whether his differences of opinion were with the national or state leadership.

The Thiruvananthapuram MP indicated that he might talk about those differences after the bypoll results.

ALSO READ | Shashi Tharoor Plays Down Congress Rift, Says Differences Should Be Settled ‘Behind Closed Doors’

Tharoor’s remarks come at a time when the Congress has not publicly backed him, after a party leader described him as the “super spokesperson of the BJP.

Former Congress MP Udit Raj had termed Tharoor as the “super spokesperson" of the BJP over his remarks during his international delegation visits when he allegedly said that India crossed the LoC for the first time in 2015.

Responding to the same, Tharoor on Thursday termed it as a “misconception".

Defending his decision to accept the Centre’s invite to head one of the delegations, Tharoor said that when he became the chairman of the External Affairs Committee of the Parliament, he had made it clear that he was focused on India’s foreign policy and its national interest and not the foreign policy of the Congress and BJP.

“I have not changed my line. When an issue concerning the nation comes up, we are all obligated to work and speak for the country. What I said during ‘Operation Sindoor’ was my own opinion.

“The Centre asked for my services. Indeed, my party did not. So, I proudly did my duty as an Indian citizen," he said.

ALSO READ | ‘Hope He Got Food For Thought’: Shashi Tharoor Mocks Asim Munir’s Lunch With Trump

Vani Mehrotra

Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.

Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.

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