Kozhikode: Amid speculation over alleged back-channel communication between senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor and intermediaries linked to the CPM, AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has spoken to the Thiruvananthapuram MP, party sources said, in an apparent attempt to address his concerns and contain rumours of an imminent exit.

According to Congress sources, Priyanka reached out to Tharoor following an intervention by senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala. Chennithala is learnt to have had a brief telephone conversation with Tharoor on Sunday after media reports suggested that the four-time MP was weighing his options amid growing disquiet within the party. Any move by Tharoor would assume significance as the Assembly elections in Kerala are imminent.

Party sources said Priyanka conveyed that the leadership was willing to engage with Tharoor and address his grievances through discussions at the appropriate level. They also indicated that Tharoor, in his conversation with Chennithala, had said he had no plans to leave the Congress.

Speculation around Tharoor’s future intensified after he skipped a recent meeting convened by the party high command to review organisational preparedness for the Assembly polls. His absence was attributed by sources to his dissatisfaction over developments at a party programme held in Kochi.

Tharoor was reportedly upset over what he perceived as a slight during a Mahapanchayat in Kochi attended by Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders. In the said event, he was not mentioned by name in Rahul Gandhi’s address, even as several other leaders on the dais were acknowledged. Party sources said this had added to existing strains between Tharoor and sections of the leadership in the State.

Meanwhile, Tharoor arrived in Dubai on Sunday to attend a series of engagements. Reports in a section of the media suggested that he was expected to meet a businessman said to be close to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. This fuelled speculations about possible political realignments. However, Tharoor declined to comment on these reports when approached by journalists on the sidelines of an event in Dubai.

The Congress leadership has not issued any official statement on the matter, even as the episode has triggered renewed discussion within Kerala’s political circles about the party's internal fault lines. There is also a larger narrative about the CPM’s efforts to expand its appeal beyond its traditional base.