'Not a Rahulian': Mani Shankar Aiyar deepens Congress rift
What's the story
Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar has stirred another controversy by saying that he's "not a Rahulian." The fresh remarks came after the party disassociated itself from him over his remarks on Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, with Pawan Khera saying, "Mr. Aiyar has had no connection whatsoever with....Congress for the past few years." Speaking at a seminar, Aiyar had praised the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) government's panchayati raj model, saying he's confident Vijayan will return to power again.
Controversial statements
Aiyar's controversial comments on Rahul Gandhi
After Aiyar's comments on the Vijayan government sparked a controversy, he later clarified, "I am in the Congress party, I haven't left it. Mr Rahul Gandhi has forgotten that I am a member of the party. Therefore, I am a Gandhian, I am a Nehruvian, I am a Rajivian but I am not a Rahulian." This statement has further widened rifts within the party ranks.
Political speculation
'Satheesan is made the CM....'
Aiyar had also said he would retract his statement if VD Satheesan is made the next chief minister, calling him "a socialist secularist." "If Satheesan is made the CM, I am ready to withdraw the statement that Pinarayi will become CM. He is a socialist secularist." Aiyar called Vijayan "a very intelligent man" and added, "If I am Pinarayi Vijayan I wouldn't want me."
Political future
'Tharoor eying foreign minister role, Khera a puppet'
In another interview, the Congress politician added salt to the wound by criticizing numerous senior Congress leaders, including Shashi Tharoor, Jairam Ramesh, and Pawan Khera, and casting doubt on the party's chances in the upcoming Kerala Assembly election. Calling Khera a "puppet," he said he is not a party spokesman. On Tharoor, he called the four-time Thiruvananthapuram "anti-Pakistan," who harbors ambitions to be the "next foreign minister."
Political backlash
BJP reacts to Aiyar's statements
Amid the infighting, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) reacted to Aiyar's statements, with former Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai saying it was the Congress that decided to keep him. "When he went to Kerala, endorsing Mr Vijayan, also shows the kind of broken ideologies in which both Congress and the Communist, both are operating. I believe, since Congress knows that it can't win....I see this statement as an underhanded deal between Congress and the Communists there," he said.