"Change of government in Kerala is absolutely indispensable": Shashi Tharoor

New Delhi [India], February 1 : Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday asserted that a change of government in Kerala is "absolutely indispensable", sharply criticising the CPI(M)-led LDF government's economic management and expressing confidence that the Congress-led UDF can offer a credible alternative ahead of the Assembly elections.
Speaking to ANI, Tharoor said, "I think it's absolutely indispensable that there should be a change of government. The Left has been ruling for 10 years now, and they just proposed a budget a couple of days ago, which was completely based on funds they don't have, and funds that the Centre is not willing to give them."
He said Kerala voters are "being squeezed between an unsupportive Centre and fiscal irresponsibility at the state level."
"So, between a Centre that is indifferent to Kerala and the state that is committing fiscal profligacy, clearly, the innocent Kerala voter is caught in a trap," Tharoor said.
Criticising the current development trajectory, he remarked, "The Kerala growth model has been replaced by the Kerala debt model." Emphasising the need for a new approach, Tharoor said, "We need to find new sources of revenue through the ease of doing business. We have to have a new vision for Kerala."
Pitching the Congress-led UDF as the alternative, he said, "Honestly, the UDF, led by the Congress, is the only option that would provide a new approach to governance and that would actually give new ideas to the state."
Expressing optimism, Tharoor added, "This time, I think we will do very much better, and we will perhaps reverse the tables too. Our aspiration is to get to 100-plus seats. There is a lot of anti-incumbency. Don't have any doubts about that. People have seen the worst of the misrule of the CPM-led LDF government in the course of the last 10 years."
On foreign trade, Tharoor welcomed the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement, calling FTAs crucial for India's economic future. "The FTAs are very, very important," he said, noting that India may have lost a significant share of the US market.
"If we can make the EU our biggest market, that will compensate, no doubt about that," he said, while urging faster implementation. "From our point of view, that needs to be expedited," Tharoor said, explaining that increased exports would boost production and employment.
He added, "If it generates employment for our people, as well as export-led growth, there is much to applaud, and so I'm all in favour of more and more FTAs." Tharoor also said FTAs send a strong geopolitical message. "The geopolitical message it sends is that we have options... more friends, more partners, and that too is a good message that no country takes us for granted."
Commenting on the India-US trade deal and US President Donald Trump's remarks on Venezuelan oil, Tharoor said the developments were not surprising. "The deal has been hanging for a very long time," he said, adding that sanctions on Venezuelan, Iranian and Russian oil had distorted global supply.
Explaining the situation, Tharoor said, "India was able to ease the pressure on limited supply by buying Russian oil with the consent and knowledge of Western countries. But now that President Trump has cracked down on that and imposed a 50 per cent tariff on India, that becomes unviable."
He warned that reduced sourcing options could push prices up unless alternative supplies are unlocked. "If you don't increase that from another source, inevitably, oil prices will increase everywhere," he said. Explaining the US move on Venezuela, Tharoor added, "It was essential that when they tighten the screws on Russia, they have to open the spigot on Venezuela."
He said this would help stabilise global prices. "From India's point of view, it will not cost us significantly more, because world oil prices will remain stable... the amount of oil coming into the global oil pool will ensure that prices remain stable," Tharoor said.
On his recent meeting with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, Tharoor said the party leadership is united and focused. "We're on the same page. We're moving forward determinately," he said, stressing that Congress must represent not just an opposition party, but an alternative government.
Tharoor said people want to see readiness to govern. "An alternative government is what the people want to see, whether at the Centre or the state. They want to see people who are ready to assume the reins of office and take on the responsibility of serving the people," he said, adding, "I believe the Congress is uniquely suited to do that, because we have a lot of experienced, qualified and able people in our ranks. We need to stay together, work together and move forward together, and we're doing that."