New Delhi: “All is good.”
With these words, a smiling Shashi Tharoor emerged from a two-hour meeting with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi at Parliament House on Thursday, signalling that the long-festering misgivings between the two sides may finally have been resolved.
“We had a discussion with my two party leaders, the LoP and the Congress president. We had a very good, constructive, positive discussion. All is good, and we are moving together on the same page. What more can I say?” Tharoor told reporters.
Tharoor’s absence from a meeting of the Congress high command with its Kerala leadership last week had deepened concerns within the party that its ties with the Thiruvananthapuram MP could be nearing a breaking point. He had let it be known through people close to him that he felt slighted when Rahul Gandhi did not acknowledge his presence on the dais at a party event in Kochi on 19 January.
An upset Tharoor chose to go to a literary festival rather than fly to Delhi to attend the meeting to review preparations for the upcoming assembly polls. Publicly, he maintained he would raise his issues in appropriate forums of the party. That eventually led to Thursday’s meeting, Congress sources said, crediting party general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal with having organised it.
Thanks to @INCIndia President @kharge ji and LS LoP @RahulGandhi ji for a warm and constructive discussion today on a wide range of subjects. We are all on the same page as we move forward in the service of the people of India. pic.twitter.com/T5l8jqkhUT
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) January 29, 2026
Sources said both Kharge and Rahul assured Tharoor that they consider him an important voice in the party and value his contributions over the years. It is also learnt that Rahul told Tharoor his services are essential as Kerala heads to polls, and made it clear that his opinion would be taken into account in all decision-making.
“Thanks to @INCIndia President @kharge ji and LS LoP @RahulGandhi ji for a warm and constructive discussion today on a wide range of subjects. We are all on the same page as we move forward in the service of the people of India,” Tharoor posted on X after the meeting, reciprocating the warmth shown to him by the party high command.
Asked if he would campaign for the party, Tharoor responded, “I have always campaigned for the party – where have I not campaigned?” He also dismissed suggestions that he was aspiring to be the party’s chief ministerial face in the election.
“No, that was never the issue. I am not interested in being a candidate for anything. At the moment, I am already an MP, and I have the trust of my voters from Thiruvananthapuram. I have to look after their interests in Parliament; that is my job,” he said.
Tharoor skipping last week’s meeting had come as a surprise for many, as after months of a visible and widening rift, there were signs throughout December and January that his relationship with the Congress had turned a corner, with him attending party events and meetings in Kerala.
He had also struck a conciliatory note, insisting he had never deviated from the party line except on the subject of Operation Sindoor.
“I have at no stage violated any of the Congress’ positions in Parliament; the only issue on which there has been public disagreement on principle is about Operation Sindoor, where I did take a very strong stand, and I remain unapologetic about that,” the MP had said on 24 January, responding to a question from the audience at the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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