Shashi Tharoor Shares Survey, Claims to be Most Popular CM Candidate; Congress Leader Muraleedharan Questions His Party Affiliation.
Kerala CM: The sharing of a survey by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on social media has created a stir in Kerala politics. According to the survey, Tharoor is the most popular candidate for Chief Minister of the state. However, this survey has become a point of contention within the Congress itself. Senior party leader K. Muraleedharan, indirectly attacking Tharoor, said that he should first decide which party he belongs to.
UDF's Chief Minister Will Only Be From UDF
K. Muraleedharan clearly stated that if the United Democratic Front (UDF) comes to power in the 2026 assembly elections, the Chief Minister will be chosen from within their ranks. He said that their main objective is to win the elections and the party should not get involved in unnecessary controversies.
Party's Reaction to the Survey
Reacting to the survey, Muraleedharan said that regardless of any survey that may declare Tharoor as popular, there are many senior leaders in the Congress party for the post of Chief Minister. The party has an established process for making decisions and the Chief Minister will be selected based on that. He emphasized that the Congress is an organized party, not a platform for individualistic politics.
Signals from Tharoor
MP Shashi Tharoor recently shared a survey conducted by a private agency on his X (formerly Twitter) account. It indicated that 28.3 percent of people want to see him as the next Chief Minister of Kerala. Along with the post, Tharoor made a gesture of folded hands, which fueled speculations that he desires the post of Chief Minister.
Tension between Congress and Tharoor
For some time now, reports of differences between Shashi Tharoor and the Congress leadership have been surfacing. Recently, Tharoor supported "Operation Sindoor" launched by the central government after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam. Furthermore, he has repeatedly praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign policy on international platforms, which has increased discomfort within the party.
