'Want to become voice of change within Congress': Shashi Tharoor ahead of presidential polls

"I just want the party to strengthen and that I become a voice of change within the party and show its different face to people,” Tharoor said.

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New Delhi: Senior Congress leader and Kerala MP Shashi Tharoor, who filed his nomination papers for Congress presidential election yesterday, in an interview with news agency ANI on Saturday (October 1, 2022) said that he wants the party to strengthen and also wants to become a “voice of change” within the party.

“The internal democracy that we are showing is not present in any other party. When election was announced, I had intention (to contest). I wrote an article, stating that the election is good for the party and mentioned its reasons,” Tharoor said. 

“After that several people, ordinary workers told me to contest the poll. I started thinking and talking to people...I just want the party to strengthen and that I become a voice of change within the party and show its different face to people,” he added.

After that several people, ordinary workers told me to contest the poll. I started thinking and talking to people...I just want the party to strengthen and that I become a voice of the changes within the party and show its different face to people: Shashi Tharoor (2/2) pic.twitter.com/BzmpVlHDlK

— ANI (@ANI) October 1, 2022

Earlier today, Senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid on Saturday joined issue with Shashi Tharoor, who has said his electoral competitor in the AICC presidential poll, M Mallikarjun Kharge was a ''candidate of continuity'' and of ''status quo'', while those wanting change in party should vote for him. 

''Shashi says this (Kharge) has elements of continuity, his (Tharoor's) has elements of change. But continuity and change are subjective terms, relative terms'', the former Union Minister told PTI. 

''I think that the very fact that we are having this election is reemphasis of continuity with change because it's not the first time that we are having elections. And that elections in the past have had certain features; this has its own features. So, for us this is all welcome'', he said. '

'We just want to get to that destination that the party comes out stronger and more determined that the efforts being put in by Rahul Gandhi...those efforts will then spread across full campaign against the things we oppose'', Khurshid added.