Thiruvananthapuram: In the context of the Muslim League baulking at the statements made by KPCC president K Sudhakaran, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, MP, is scheduled to visit the Panakkad house.
Tharoor, who will reach Panakkad on November 22, will hold discussions with the League’s State president Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal and PK Kunhalikutty.
Significantly, on the same day, Tharoor will be hosted as the chief guest at the programmes at the Civil Service Academy, Perinthalmanna, the League’s iconic institution.
The Malabar visit by Tharoor is a prelude to his attempts to focus more on State politics after he created a sensation by contesting against Mallikarjun Kharge for the post of the Congress president.
Tharoor, who will take part in some important functions in Kannur, Kozhikode, and Malappuram districts, will also hold discussions with prominent personalities.
The Congress and the rest of the allies in the United Democratic Front (UDF) are observing with anxiety Tharoor’s Panakkad vist and his subsequent engagements.
The Malabar tour is the first step to the start of programmes planned to be held in all the 14 districts.
The Mulim League is of the opinion that the Congress must utilize Tharoor’s service as a leader more and also put him in the political frontline.
The League has already conveyed this to the Congress leadership.
The League considers Tharoor as a popular leader whom the people look to up eagerly.
The League is also of the view that Tharoor’s presence in the State should be put to good use in the next Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. In this context, Tharoor’s Panakkad visit assumes much significance.
Tharoor will spend two hours at the Civil Services Academy at Perinthalmanna, which was established at the initiative of Najeeb Kanthapuram, MLA. Prior to it, Tharoor will visit Panakkad at 8.30 a.m. He will also visit the Malappuram District Congress Committee (DCC) office.
MK Raghavan, who declared support to Tharoor, contrary to the stand adopted by other Kerala leaders in the election to the post of party president, is coordinating the Malabar tour.
Tharoor will begin the visit on November 20, with a visit to MT Vasudevan Nair in Kozhikode.
On the same day, he will also visit the residences of KP Unnikrishnan and MV Shreyams Kumar. On November 22, Tharoor will meet Kanthapuram AP Aboobacker Musliyar. He will take part in over 10 programmes in three districts.
The Nair Service Society (NSS) is also planning to host Tharoor as the chief guest at the Mannam Jayanti celebrations this year.
This is an indication that some misunderstandings that the NSS harboured at the time when Tharoor entered politics has been cleared up.
Even though none in Kerala voiced in an explicit manner their opposition to Tharoor standing for the election to the post of Congress president, they were not in tune with it.
But, it was revealed later that around 100 votes out of the 1,072 votes garnered by Tharoor were polled from Kerala.
The League has taken the stand that though it firmly opposes the statements made by the KPCC president, it would not interfere in the internal affairs of the Congress.
However, the League has demanded that the KPCC should shed its lethargic attitude and become more active in the political and organisational issues.
Though the League has given out signals that it has let bygones be bygones, the Congress believes that internally, the issues are continuing to smoulder in that party.
The League has also taken into account the fact that the top Congress leadership has taken seriously the statements by Sudhakaran and had persuaded him to retract them.
