Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former Union Minister O. Rajagopal has backtracked from his comments that were widely perceived as an endorsement for Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor’s electoral prospects in the constituency during the upcoming General elections.
Speaking at a presentation ceremony organised by the N. Ramachandran Foundation Award in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday evening, Mr. Rajagopal was effusive in his praise for the Congress leader who had defeated him in the 2014 Lok Sabha election.
Expressing pride that the three-time MP hailed from his native district Palakkad, the 94-year-old BJP leader said Mr. Tharoor has been able to win the hearts of the people of Thiruvananthapuram and that has enabled him to “win again and again” from the constituency. “I doubt if anyone else will get an opportunity to win in the near future,” he said.
