Will 2024 be Shashi Tharoor’s last election? Congress MP advocates giving opportunities for youth

The Congress leader said that if he was going to contest the polls from Thiruvananthapuram, he would fight it as though it were his last election.

ByPTI

Published Dec 29, 2023 | 1:14 PM Updated Dec 29, 2023 | 1:14 PM

Shashi Tharoor

Congress Working Committee member and Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor spoke about providing opportunities for younger people to contest polls, indicating that his upcoming fight from Thiruvananthapuram in the 2024 general elections may be his last in the constituency.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a Congress programme in Thiruvananthapuram, on Thursday, 28 December, Tharoor, however, said that there was no finality about it since it is politics.

2024 Tharoor’s last contest?

“I do believe that at some point, the time comes to make room for younger people. And that’s my thinking,” he said. In the same breath, he added, “In politics, there is another slogan which is ‘never say never’.”

He was responding to a query on his remarks in a recent TV show in which he repeatedly said that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections may mark his final contest from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency.

“I didn’t say never, I said I think it will be my last election,” Tharoor clarified.

The Congress leader said that if he was going to contest the polls from Thiruvananthapuram, he would fight it as though it were his last election, in full spirits, doing his very best for the people.

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Political career

Tharoor, who entered politics over a decade ago, achieved a resounding victory in the 2009 general election, securing the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala and marking his debut in Parliament.

In his first electoral battle, Tharoor triumphed over his closest CPI rival P Ramachandran Nair by a substantial margin of over 95,000 votes.

Following this success, he maintained his hold on the seat with decisive victories in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Before beginning his political career, Tharoor worked with the United Nations, and in 2006 represented India as the official candidate for the position of UN Secretary-General, finishing in second place out of seven candidates in the race.

Also Read: Tharoor says foreigners face difficulties in pronouncing Thiruvananthapuram

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