Facing criticism for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday stated that he was very "grateful" that Kerala Congress president received his explanation in the right spirit and has closed the matter.
"I am very grateful that Kerala Congress President has received my explanation in the right spirit and has closed the matter. I have no desire to prolong this unfortunate and unnecessary controversy", Tharoor said while speaking to reporters on Thursday.
On being asked to comment on claims that there are factions in his party who are against Tharoor because they are worried about how he would overshadow others, Tharoor said: "I am in politics to defend certain principles and values and to promote them. I don't need it as a career or a job. I have plenty of other options. I am here because in democracy politics is the most important way to advance the national interest. We shouldn't waste our time on internal factionalism and disagreements; we must focus on moving forward with the agenda of our constitution, which is under threat in the last few years."
"Instead of wasting time on public acrimony on internal disagreements which every party has... Let's focus on issues that matter to our people," Tharoor added.
Tharoor's comments come after KPCC has decided not to take any action against senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his statement praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"KPCC has decided not to take any action against Shashi Tharoor for his comments on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Tharoor's explanation was found to be satisfactory," KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran had said earlier in the day.
The state leadership was apparently upset with Tharoor after he said that Prime Minister Modi should be "praised whenever he says or does the right thing". He also endorsed the statements of senior partymen Jairam Ramesh and Abhishek Manu Singhvi where they had said that "demonising" the Prime Minister is "wrong".
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