The time comes to make room for younger people: Shashi Tharoor

Thiruvananthapuram: As his party is getting ready for Lok Sabha polls, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday pitched for providing opportunities for younger people to contest polls.

Tharoor gave hints that his upcoming fight from Thiruvananthapuram in the general elections may be his last in the constituency.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a Congress programme in Thiruvananthapuram, Mr Tharoor, however, said there was no finality about it since it is politics. "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 said, "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 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," the 67-year-old MP clarified.

The Congress leader said if he is 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.

Mr 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, Mr 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, Mr 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.

PTI with edits