I was misinterpreted, says BJP veteran hours after praising Shashi Tharoor

Hours after he praised MP Shashi Tharoor and said it would be difficult to defeat the Congress leader from the state capital in the near future, veteran BJP leader O Rajagopal on Monday clarified that his words were misinterpreted and claimed that the saffron party will win from Thiruvananthapuram constituency in the Lok Sabha polls.

Rajagopal, the former union minister who lost to Tharoor in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Thiruvananthapuram, had at a function here on Monday evening said the Congress MP's ability to sway people's minds was the reason for his repeated wins from the constituency.

"That is why he is able to win again and again from Thiruvananthapuram. I doubt that anyone else will get an opportunity to win (from Thiruvananthapuram) in the near future," he had said while speaking at the N Ramachandran Foundation award ceremony. Tharoor had touched Rajagopal's feet and hugged him after his speech.

However, hours later, in a late night Facebook post, the veteran BJP leader said that his comments were in the context that Tharoor has won more than once from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha constituency.

Rajagopal, the first-ever BJP MLA from the state after his win in the 2016 Assembly polls, said in the changed political scenario coupled with the efficiency of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, there was a possibility of the saffron party winning in the state capital, if the party activists and members work hard.

He also said that at present, Tharoor's presence in the Lok Sabha constituency was only nominal and that would adversely affect his prospects.

The veteran BJP leader said that what he said in his speech was a figurative expression of opinion and his personal and political stand was that "the BJP would win from Thiruvananthapuram this time" (upcoming Lok Sabha polls).

Rajagopal's remarks in his speech comes at a time when the BJP is attempting to win at least a few key seats in Kerala, including Thiruvananthapuram, in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.