'Not ready to cooperate with him': K Muraleedharan's fresh jab at Shashi Tharoor

Muraleedharan's latest remark comes a day after he said that Tharoor would not be invited to any Congress event unless he changes stance on national security.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is continuing to face dissent from within his own party following Operation Sindoor outreach and his recent remarks, which are seen against the party's interest.

Shashi Tharoor had urged all parties to come together and emphasised that in their own ways, their goal is to make the nation better. (PTI)

Congress leader K Muraleedharan on Monday issued an open warning to Tharoor, saying that the party's high command will decide whether to take action against him or allow him to stay. He also said that the party is not ready to cooperate with the Thiruvananthapuram MP in Kerala.

Speaking to news agency ANI, Muraleedharan said, "The final authority will be the Congress high command, which will decide whether to take action against him or allow him to remain in the party. We are not ready to cooperate with him in Kerala because he always keeps attacking the Congress and Indira Gandhi."

He further said that in the last year, PM Modi did not say anything about Sanjay Gandhi, but Tharoor accused Sanjay Gandhi. "He always opposes Rahul Gandhi's statement," Muraleedharan added.

Muraleedharan added, "We are upset with his performance in Kerala. He is no longer coming to his parliamentary constituency...We have decided that we will not cooperate with him in the upcoming local body elections. We will follow the instructions given by the high command."

Muraleedharan's latest remarks comes a day after he said that Tharoor would not be invited to any Congress event in Thiruvananthapuram unless he changes his stand on national security.

Recently, while talking about the issues related to the Congress high command, Tharoor said that sometimes it is important to cooperate with other parties for the sake of national security.

At an event in Kochi, Tharoor was answering a student's question regarding his relations with the Congress top brass.

The Congress MP said that for him, national security will always come first. "Politics is unfortunately or otherwise in any democracy is about competition. As a result when people like me say it that we respect our parties we have certain values and convictions which keep us in our parties. But we need to cooperate with other parties in the interest of national security the question you asked. Sometimes the parties feel that is disloyal to them and that becomes a big problem which is your first loyalty? To my mind the nation comes first", he said.

Tharoor emphasised that political parties are a means of making the nation better. So to my mind whichever party you belong to the objective of that party is to create a better India in it's own way. The parties have the right to disagree about the best way of doing that, the best way of making a better India," he added.

He noted that his commitment is towards making a better and safer India whose borders are also secure.

Tharoor said that there are several different points of view in parties, some may say more capitalism, some may say more socialism, some might even favour regulatory controls while others might oppose too much regulation. And all this is okay, he said.

"But ultimately, we must all be committed to a better India, a safer India, an India whose borders are protected, whose territory is safe, whose people's well-being can be nurtured. And that is my commitment", he said.

He called on all the parties and asked to remain united when the nation is "imperiled". Quoting the nation's first prime minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the Congress MP said, "Who lives if India dies? And that's a question to which there is no answer. India must come first, and then only can we all live."

"I'm saying it to all parties. Put your differences aside when the nation is imperiled. Because if there is no India, there's a very famous line of Nehru's, which I am very fond of quoting. Who lives if India dies? And that's a question to which there is no answer. India must come first, and then only can we all live," Tharoor added.