Key Points

“He doesn’t need to wait for the party to expel him -- that’s not going to happen. But he clearly wants to be thrown out. It’s best he leaves on his own,” said Unnithan, a former film actor known for his blunt remarks.

Unnithan further alleged that Tharoor should no longer be allowed to attend Congress Parliamentary Party meetings. “Whatever is discussed there, he goes and tells PM Modi,” he claimed.

Unnithan rose to prominence during a turbulent phase in Kerala Congress politics in the early 2000s, when veteran leader and four-time Chief Minister K. Karunakaran rebelled and split the party.

Initially aligned with Karunakaran, Unnithan later shifted to the faction led by then-defence minister A.K. Antony and two-time CM Oommen Chandy. His fiery attacks on Karunakaran and his family caught public attention, eventually launching him into a brief film career.

He contested his first election in 2006 but lost to CPI-M stalwart Kodiyeri Balakrishnan. Thirteen years later, in 2019, the party fielded him as a surprise candidate from the northernmost constituency of Kasargod, far from his hometown in the capital. He won the seat and retained it in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Unnithan’s broadside against Tharoor came a day after senior Congress leader K. Muraleedharan -- Karunakaran’s son -- declared that Tharoor would no longer be invited to party events in Thiruvananthapuram unless he changed his stance on national security issues.

However, not all Congress MPs appear to share Unnithan’s hostility. Many younger lawmakers in Parliament are reportedly reluctant to alienate the four-time MP, who remains a high-profile and popular figure.

Tharoor, who arrived at the Congress office in Parliament on Monday, appeared composed and greeted colleagues warmly, indicating any tension. He was briefly seen chatting with BJP MP Tejasvi Surya in the parliament premises. Recently, he had led an all-party delegation to the Americas under the banner of 'Operation Sindoor' and emphasized at a Kochi event that “national interest must come before partisan politics.”

His remarks -- especially expressions of support for the armed forces and the central government on national security -- have drawn criticism from within the Congress, with some accusing him of veering too close to the BJP line.

In the coming days, the party’s response to Tharoor -- and his to the party -- will likely reveal much about the direction of internal dynamics in the Congress.

- IANS