Thiruvananthapuram: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor made light of his party chief's bid to play down his aspiration to lead the organisation by contesting the party presidential poll.
In response to K Sudhakaran labelling him as a 'trainee', the lawmaker representing the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency said his fellow partyman is free to express himself.
"I am a trainee with a work history of 46 years," Tharoor quipped while maintaining that Sudhakaran, who is the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, "is still a friend".
Sudhakaran on Sunday retracted his statements made against Tharoor and other politicians in the state.
He regretted that his statement on Tharoor was misinterpreted. "I merely meant that Tharoor lacked experience. I did not call him a 'trainee'," Sudhakaran said.
Tharoor is contesting the Congress presidential poll against party veteran Mallikarjun Kharge.
Though Sudhakaran has thrown his lot with Tharoor's rival, the latter claimed he would bag at least 100 votes from Congress functionaries in Kerala who are eligible to vote in the party poll.
Earlier, Tharoor had pointed out that leaders publicly backing an 'official' candidate disturbs the level-playing field for the polls.
Kharge is seen as a favourite for the top party post because of his perceived proximity to the Gandhi family. But the Gandhis have made it clear that they will remain neutral.
The Congress presidential poll is now on and the results will be out on Wednesday.
